Download 1409 Lab Manual - Austin Community College

The Diversityof Life
Lab Manual
Stephen W. Ziser
Department of Biology
Pinnacle Campus
for
BIOL 1409 General Biology:
The Diversity of Life
Lab Activities,
Homework & Lab Assignments
2017.6
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
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Biol 1409: Diversity of Life
Ziser - Lab Manual
Table of Contents
1. Overview of Semester Lab Activities
Laboratory Activities
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2. Introduction to the Lab & Safety Information
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3. Laboratory Exercises
Microscopy . . . . . .
Taxonomy and Classification .
Cells – The Basic Units of Life .
Asexual & Sexual Reproduction
Development & Life Cycles . .
Ecosystems of Texas . . . .
The Bacterial Kingdoms . . .
The Protists . . . . . .
The Fungi . . . . . . .
The Plant Kingdom . . . .
The Animal Kingdom . . .
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4. Lab Reports (to be turned in - deadline dates as announced)
Taxonomy & Classification . . . . . .
Ecosystems of Texas.. . . . . . . .
The Bacterial Kingdoms . . . . . . .
The Protists . . . . . . . . . .
The Fungi . . . . . . . . . . .
Leaf Identification Exercise . . . . . .
The Plant Kingdom . . . . . . . .
Identifying Common Freshwater Invertebrates
The Animal Kingdom . . . . . . .
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
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Biol 1409: Diversity of Life
Semester Activities
Lab Exercises
The schedule for the lab activities is posted in the Course Syllabus and on the instructor’s website. Changes will be
announced ahead of time. The Photo Atlas is used as a visual guide to the activities described in this lab manual
Introduction & Use of Compound Microscope & Dissecting Scope
be able to identify and use the various parts of a compound microscope
be able to use a magnifying glass and dissecting scope
understand the difference between each of the above, the advantages and
disadvantagesof each and when each should be used
learn how to make a wet mount
Kingdoms of Life
look at a variety of water samples and learn how to visually distinguish between the
major kingdoms of living organisms
be able to describe the appearance of members of each kingdom and how to tell them
apart from each other
try to find and illustrate a couple of organisms from each kingdom
Taxonomy and Classification
learn the process of naming and classifying living organisms
learn how to observe and describe sometimes minute details to be able to
distinguish between different species
learn to judge whether particular traits are important or unimportant in
distinguishing between species
Cells: The Basic Units of Life
observe and distinguish between prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells
learn to identify the various organelles and structures associated with each
in models and slides
learn the functions of some of these organelles and structures
identify and distinguish between selected tissues
Reproduction, Development & Life Cycles
learn the general terminology for the different kinds of sexual and asexual
reproduction
understand what a life cycle is and the term ‘alternation of generations’
learn to recognize some of the different stages of development in plants and animals
Ecosystems of Texas
research the biotic and abiotic characteristics of selected Texas ecosystems
The Bacteria (Archaea & Eubacteria)
learn how to collect, handle and grow bacteria
learn the characteristics used to identify bacterial species
learn to distinguish microscopic and colonial morphology
distinguish the cyanobacteria from nonphotosynthetic bacteria
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
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The Protists (Algae, Protozoa, Slime Molds)
learn to recognize members of the kingdom and to distinguish them from the
bacteria
identify and recognize selected organelles and structures
distinguish between the three major kinds of protists
The Fungi (Yeasts & Molds)
learn how to collect and culture and preserve fungi
learn to distinguish between the various kinds fungal spores
distinguish between the common varieties of yeasts and fungi
The Plants (Mosses, Ferns, Conifers & Flowering Plants)
identify and recognize the variety of cells, tissues and organs in typical plants
survey the diversity of plants and the variety of form and function of the various
organs
understand the variations in life cycles of the different major groups of plants
the activities may also include some physiological experiments
The Animals (Sponges, Jellyfish, Worms, Parasites,Shelled Animals, Arthropods,
Vertebrates)
identify and recognize the variety of cells, tissues and organs found in the animal
kingdom
investigate some of the typical animal life forms and adaptations to a variety of
habitats
investigate some of the physiological processes common in most animals
appreciate the great diversity and economic importance of animals
the activities may also include a few physiological experiments on animals
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
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Biol 1409 Lab Orientation
The laboratory portion of this course is designed provide you with “hands-on” experience with the
diversityof life on earth. This method of ‘hands on’ learning should also enhance and strengthen the
knowledge you gain in lectures.
At times you will be working individually, in pairs or in groups of three or four. Each lab period is
loosely structured to begin with a short introduction to the exercise that highlights the activities of the
day, what materials are available for use and any changes in procedures. After that you will work
independently to learn the material.
There is never enough time in lab to go over each and every item that you are assigned. The lab is a
designated a time when you have access to materials that you will not have available during home study
time. Some of the information assigned in lab you can learn at home, other items, particularly
anatomical terms identified on dissected organs, animals and models and microscopic details viewed
with a microscope can only be learned adequately in the lab room.
General Lab Rules:
1. Read the lab exercise before you come to lab. There is not time to review every aspect of each
exercise and still give you time to work on your own. I will assume that you know what the exercise
covers in general and I will only review changes or specific materials that you will use.
2. Before each lab familiarize yourself with the highlighted terms and review the illustrations cited in
your atlas to familiarize yourself with the day’s material.
3. Read and memorize the laboratory safety rules. The preservatives are irritants and some of you
may be allergic to them. Gloves must be used during dissections and will be provided. Your dissecting
tools will be provided for you as well.
4. The PIN lab room is open on Fridays, 8:00 am to 12:00 pm for extra lab study time.
Dissections:
Dissections are an integral part of the biology lab experience. There is no substitute for handling and
dissecting real tissues and organs as a way to learn the material.
The term “dissection” means “to expose to view”. Many beginning students assume that dissecting
automatically means “cutting things up” but actual cutting is rare and then it will usually be done with
scissors, not scalpels. Scalpels more often damage the material and make things harder to see and their
use is discouraged in most cases. While you will occasionally use scissors to begin the process of
dissection your primary tools of dissection will be forceps and blunt probes and fingers.
Any dissections will be performed as a group. Typically one person reads the instructions and one or
two other students will actually do the dissection. Your instructor will be watching to ensure that this is
a shared project. Rolls should be rotated frequently. Generally, the person actually doing the
dissection is the one who learns the material best.
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
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Dissecting tools are provided in the student drawers. Any dissected materials to be discarded must be
placed in the designated container; NOT in the sinks. You will be expected to rinse your i tray, rinse
and dry your pins and utensils and replace them where you found them and clean off your counter with
disinfectant spray.
Biology Lab Safety Procedures and Information
Health and safety are paramount values in science classrooms, laboratories and field
activities. You are expected to learn, understand and comply with ACC environmental, health
and safety procedures and agree to follow the ACC science safety policy. You are expected
to conduct yourself professionally with respect and courtesy to all. You can read the complete
ACC science safety policy at: http://www.austincc.edu/sci_safe/
All safety policies and procedures apply to scheduled lab classes as well as open labs.
Consequences for not complying with safety procedures:
1. You will not be able to participate in a lab activity if:
a. you are late for class and have missed safety training specific for that day’s lab or field
activity;
b. you have forgotten your personal protective equipment;
c. you refuse to wear personal protective equipment;
d. you have not followed safety policies and procedures for that lab or field activity.
2. You may be withdrawn from the class and not reinstated if:
a. you missed required safety training at the beginning of the semester;
b. you repeatedly fail to follow lab safety policies and procedures.
3. You may be expelled from ACC if you thoughtlessly or intentionally jeopardize the health or
safety or another individual.
Emergencies
If there is a life-threatening emergency (fire, major chemical spill, explosion, injury):
1. Report the situation and your specific location (campus, room) by
• using the safety phone in a lab classroom; it will automatically connect you to ACC
Police Dispatch (location of safety phone ___________________________)
• calling 222 from any ACC phone to reach ACC Police Dispatch
• calling 512-223-7999 from a cell phone or non-ACC phone to reach ACC Police
Dispatch
2. Evacuate if necessary:
a. take your personal belongings with you if possible;
b. on your way out, close but do not lock the classroom door;
c. go to the designated rally point for your campus and building.
Directions to nearest exit: ______________________________________
Location of rally point:_________________________________________
In the event of an extreme emergency or impending threat, ACC Emergency Alert can send
critical voice and text messages to your cellphone. Verify and update your ACC Emergency
Alert information. For non-emergency calls, dial 512-223-1231.
Safety Equipment and How to Use It:
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
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Information about chemicals used in this laboratory can be found in Material Safety
Data Sheets (MSDSs) and in a chemical inventory located __________________.
The emergency gas shut-off for this lab is located: _____________________. Shut off the
gas immediately if gas nozzles or valves are damaged or if there is a fire.
Fire extinguishers are located: (1) ________________________________.
(2) ________________________________.
To use a fire extinguisher:
1) twist the pin and then pull it out of the handle
2) hold the end of the hose and point it at the base of the fire
3) squeeze the handle
Fire blankets are located: (1) __________________________.
(2) ___________________________.
If you are on fire, stop, drop and roll. Let someone else to get the fire blanket.
A safety shower is located _________________________________________. If you spill
a significant quantity of chemical, especially an acid or base on yourself immediately stand
under the shower and pull the handle. Disrobe. The instructor will evacuate the room and
close the doors for your privacy. Someone of your gender will stay to help you. Stand
under the shower for at least 20 minutes. You will be given clothing after the shower.
An eyewash is located ________________________________. If a chemical is splashed
or rubbed into your eyes you must use an eyewash for at least 20 minutes with your eyes
held open. Someone will help you with this.
If a person is experiencing electrical shock from touching wires or equipment, use a belt or
other non-conducting material to pull them away from the electrical source.
First aid kits are located: (1) ____________________________.
(2) ____________________________.
a. Only minor cuts and burns will be treated in the lab. Serious injuries must be treated in
a medical facility. Emergency Medical Services (EMS) will be called if you are injured
and are unable to take yourself to a medical facility.
b. The instructor must fill out a report describing your injury.
Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
1. Required when biological, chemical or physical hazards are present on the lab
benches, open shelves or counters:
a. Safety Eyewear
• You must wear non-tinted safety eyewear (safety glasses or goggles) marked Z87
when directed to do so by the lab instructor or lab safety instructions.
• You must bring your protective eyewear with you to every lab class. If you forget
your eyewear and the lab room does not have a pair to loan to you, you will not be
able to participate in the lab and may forfeit your lab grade for that day. ACC
cannot guarantee that loaned safety glasses or safety goggles are uncontaminated
by microbes or chemicals.
• People who wear contact lenses must wear goggles and may not wear safety
glasses.
b. Gloves – You will be provided with nitrile gloves for handling biohazards and hazardous
chemicals. Please notify the instructor if your skin is irritated by these gloves.
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
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c. Shoes – Shoes must cover the top, front and sides of your feet. They must be
impervious to liquids.
d. More specific requirements may exist for labs in which unique hazards are present (for
example: BSL2 organisms or physical hazards such as sharps, open flame, UV light,
pressurized gases, or liquid nitrogen.
2. Recommended when biological, chemical or physical hazards are present on the lab
benches, open shelves or counters:
a. Apron or Lab Coat – You may be instructed to wear an apron or lab coat over your
clothes when handling biohazards or hazardous chemicals.
b. Wear natural fiber clothing for any lab activity involving open flame (synthetic material
melts onto skin in a fire).
c. Before putting on gloves remove watches, rings, and bracelets that could either
puncture the glove from the inside or interfere with rapid removal of the gloves.
d. Tie back long hair.
e. Do not wear clothing with long, loose sleeves.
Waste Disposal
You must precisely follow the waste disposal procedures. Never dispose of anything in lab
without prior direction from the instructor.
• Hazardous chemical waste containers are located:
solids _________________________________________________________
liquids ________________________________________________________
• Biohazard bags are located: __________________________________________
• Sharps containers are located: ________________________________________
• Glass (rinsed test tubes and broken glass) disposal boxes are located:
______________________________________
• Regular trash containers are located: ___________________________________
Lab Conduct
1) At the beginning of any class held in a lab room, do not enter the room until your instructor
is present. Wait in the hall, even if the door is open.
2) Do these things:
• follow all procedures in manuals, in handouts, and as given by the instructor;
• store backpacks, coats, and other personal items as directed;
• report broken glass and chemical spills to your instructor immediately.
3) Do NOT do these things:
• come to class while intoxicated or while under the influence of drugs that impair your
ability to safely perform the lab or field activity;
• horse around or perform unauthorized experiments;
• eat, drink, or chew (tobacco or gum);
• bring drinks or food (even in closed containers) into the lab;
• pipet by mouth;
• taste chemicals or directly smell chemical fumes.
Lab Hygiene
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Clean up your individual work area/equipment and community work areas/equipment
(e.g., sinks, balances).
Put lids back on bottles and containers immediately after use.
Do not put excess chemicals back into original containers.
Dispose of chemicals and waste only as directed by the instructor.
Turn off equipment as instructed.
Wash your hands prior to leaving lab.
Assume that chemicals used in lab are corrosive or irritating. If at any time chemicals
come into contact with your skin wash the affected area immediately.
Disease
Diseases such as HIV and hepatitis can be transmitted from person to person through
contact with human blood or other body fluids. Follow the Universal Precautions whenever
exposure to human body fluids is possible:
• Consider all body fluids (saliva, blood, urine, feces, vomit) to be potentially
infected with a harmful pathogen.
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Do not touch or come into contact with anyone else's body fluids.
Student Accident Insurance
All students enrolled in lab classes are covered by Student Accident Insurance that pays
for injuries occurring from school sponsored activities related to the class. It does not pay for
illnesses such as allergies or the flu, or fainting. All faculty and students should read the
guidelines at
http://www.austincc.edu/ehs/pdf/Procedure303006StudentAccident012611.pdf
Chemical Hazard Labels
• Label all containers and test tubes as directed.
• Inform your instructor immediately if a label is damaged in any way.
• Read all labels and pay special attention to hazard information.
A typical chemical hazard label conveys two kinds of information: 1) the category of the
hazard (flammable, toxic, reactive, or corrosive) and 2) the level of the hazard. There are two
main types of labels: those shaped like diamonds and those shaped like bars. In both types
the category of hazard is represented by a color and the level of the hazard is represented by
a number.
1. Hazard categories are coded by color:
red
fire hazard, flammability
blue
health hazard, toxicity
yellow
reactivity
white diamond
provides more specific information about the hazard
white bar
tells you what kind of protective equipment (PPE) is required for
handling that chemical
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2. Hazard level is coded by a number:
0
1
2
minimal
slight
moderate
3
severe, serious
4
extreme
3. Refer to the training poster in your lab for examples.
4. Other types of hazard warning labels you must recognize are:
a. biohazards
b. radioactive materials
Course Specific Precautions (PIN Biol 1409)
1. Do not bring food or drinks into the lab room.
2. Learn the locations of the vent switch, safety shower, extinguisher, glass disposal boxes, discarded
tissue buckets, first aid kit and spill kits and be able to use each
3. Wash lab benches with lysol spray BEFORE and AFTER each lab period
4. Place your books beneath the lab bench, if you have a jacket or sweater there are hooks available on
which to hang them. Keep your countertop clear of all but your lab manual and materials you
are actually working with.
5. Check your lab stool to be sure the back is tightened
6. If you drop and break a beaker or other glassware do not pick it up, notify me and I’ll take care of it.
7. If the floor is wet cover it with paper towels and notify the instructor
8. Follow the procedures as directed for proper handling and care of microscopes and slides
9. Do not have more than one or two prepared slides at your bench at any time.
10. Slides and coverslips that you prepare should be discarded in the glass disposal boxes, do not
attempt to clean them (Do not discard any of the prepared slides).
11. Make sure the venting switch is on when dissections are being done.
12. Use latex or nitrile gloves while dissecting since the preservatives used can be quite strong and
may be toxic.
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13. Aprons are available as needed to protect your clothes, we recommend that you wear older clothes
for lab.
14. Wash and dry any dissecting utensils that you used and return them to the case in your lab drawer.
15. Wash your hands after dissecting.
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Assuming reasonable care and caution required for any lab procedure, there are two
situations that will require special precautions while working in this lab:
1. The Prokaryote Kingdom (Collecting and Identifying Bacteria)
Bacteria are opportunistic, that is, given the opportunity, they may be capable of
causing an infection. You will be culturing bacteria and must handle bacterial
colonies cautiously:
Disposed of all contaminated materials in the biohazard bag or
bleach bath as directed
Wipe down the lab tables with disinfectant before and after your lab
activities in which you use live bacterial cultures
Wash your hands thoroughly after completing the lab exercise
Additional safety precautions will be outlined in the lab
2. Working with preserved materials (protists, animals, fungi & plants)
Some of these specimens will be preserved in either 70% alcohol or 10%
formalin. both solutions are irritants, some may be allergic. Overall, the hazard
levels are low as long as the vents are on, you are wearing protective gloves,
and you rinse your specimens well before dissecting or handling them.
Notify your instructor if you know you are allergic to these solutions
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Laboratory Safety & Lab Equipment
Familiarized yourself with the various supplies and equipment in the labroom by describing the
location of each item in the table below. Keep this sheet with you; you do not need to turn it in.
[Assume the blackboard is at the “front” of the room and the windows are on the “left” side]
Describe The Specific Location
of Each
latex gloves
safety glasses/goggles
eyewash station
microscopes
dissecting scopes &
hand lenses
disinfectant
spray bottles
paper towels
biohazard bag
glass disposal boxes
deionized water
spigots
fire extinguisher
first aid kit
hazardous materials
spill kit
dissecting tools
microscope slides
& cover slips
prepared microscope
slides
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Microscopy
Biol 1409 Lab Exercise
A. The Compound Microscope
From information provided by instructor and the videotape, Familiarize yourself with the basic
"anatomy" of the microscope and general functions of the following parts:
ocular (eyepiece), objectives, mechanical stage, revolving nosepiece, condenser,
illuminator, iris diaphragm, light switch
From the introductory lecture and your lab activities:
-be able to define the term “magnification”
-be able to find and focus on prepared slides at all magnifications from scanning to high power
-be able to make "wet mounts" and find and focus objects at all appropriate magnifications
-understand the meanings of common abbreviations: cs, ls, sec, wm, etc
-know where to dispose of slides and cover slips
B. The Dissecting Scope
Familiarize yourself with the basic "anatomy" of the dissecting scope and general functions of the
following parts:
eyepiece, objective lens, magnification knob, stage, lamp switch, light adjusting knob,
focusing knob
From the introductory lecture and your lab activities:
-be able to focus, adjust the magnification, and adjust the light on both types of scopes
-know when it is best to use this scope as opposed to the compound microscope
C. Magnifying Glass (Hand Lens)
Familiarize yourself with the use of a magnifying glass
Know when to use each of these methods of magnification and the advantages and disadvantages of
each
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Taxonomy and Classification
Biol 1409 Lab Exercise
Taxonomy and classification involves describing and naming new organisms and comparing their
similarities and differences with other organisms. Linnaeus was the first to develop a workable system
of classification. Two of his main contributions to the science of taxonomy was to provide a unique
scientific name for each and every known species of life. He then categorized each of these organisms
into nested groupings based on their similarities and differences; called the Hierarchy of
Classification.
While some species can have 100’s of common names throughout the world each has only a single
scientific name. The “species” is the basic unit of biological classification. Organisms are considered
to be the same species if they can successfully interbreed and produce offspring under natural
conditions. It is the only “real” unit, all other levels (eg. phylum, class, genus, etc) are artificial and
often change as our knowledge of a group increases. There are many ways to classify objects; eg,
color, size, shape, external similarity, etc. The trick is to try to determine which characteristics are the
best to describe a particular species and to distinguish it from other similar organisms. Whenever a
new species is discovered a representative sample is collected and used as the “type specimen” for that
species; it is described in detail and becomes part of a permanent museum collection. The scientific
name of a species is a “binomial name” which includes two parts: the genus and the species epithet;
while the genus is also part of the hierarchical classification scheme first proposed by Linnaeus, both
are required as the single unique name of a particular species. For example, all humans are members
of the species, Homo sapiens; Mus musculus is the binomial name of a common mouse; and
Escherichia coli is the scientific name of a common intestinal bacterium. The scientific name is usually
a latinized pair of words that describe some characteristic of the organism or that honors the name of
someone important to the person who names the species. The genus is always capitalized and both are
underlinded or italicized.
Once a species has been collected, described and named it is placed into a hierarchy of classification
which indicates similarities and differences between it and other organisms. The hierarchy is a nesting
of groupings that categorize species according to their similarities and progressing from least similar to
more similar; Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, Species. For example, two species in
the same genus are more similar than two species in different genera but in the same family; two
genera in the same family are more similar than two genera in different families, etc.
Probably one of the most critical aspects of this exercise is the ability to make careful observation and
logical deductions from those observations. In this exercise you will describe the characteristics of a
set of shells, give them a scientific name, and then try to categorize them according to their overall
similarities to each other by placing them into appropriate levels in the classification hierarchy.
Clams & snails are animals that lives within the shells that they secrete. When these animals die the
soft parts rot away leaving only the hard shells. The attached illustrations provide some of the
terminology you might want to use as you describe your shells (you do not need to learn or memorize
these terms, they are only offered to allow you to more easily describe your different shells.
In this exercise each pair of you will be given a bag with a variety of bivalve shells. Some of the shells
are from the same species some are from other species of bivalve. Your goal will be to meticulously
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
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describe each kind of shell and to propose its interrelationships with other shells in the set. The
following information will be useful in your work:
§
§
§
§
§
§
§
some of these shells are bivalves with a left and a right shell; some shells in the bag may be left,
others right: whether a shell is a mirror image of another similar one is NOT a valid trait to use to
separate and identify a “species”
remember, these shells are only part of the animal, not the whole animal; what you will attempt to
do here is more akin to what paleontologists do to describe fossils than with how biologists
generally try to describe species
all shells are numbered, consider all shells with the same number to be the same species
shells with different numbers are probably, but not necessarily, different species – you decide
all clams & snails grow, therefore a difference in size alone is not always a good criterion for
distinguishing between two or more different species
for this exercise you can assume that all the different ‘species’ of shells are related in one way or
another, how close the relationship actually is depends on your own judgement
some characteristics are the result of shell damage, eg. holes made by oyster drills or sponges, wear
and tear from wave action, bleaching by sunlight, and would not make good criteria on which to
compare different species. You will need to decide which shell features are the most important for
characterizing a species
Lab Activities:
1. Remove the shells from the bag and sort them by number
2. Attempt to describe each different species based on the shells and illustrations provided. Your
description should be accurate enough that anyone could read your description and select exactly
which of the shells you are describing.
3. Name each “species” of shell using the binomial system (if you believe two are very closely related
you might want to put them in the same genus, etc.
4. Now, using your descriptions, attempt to group shells, by their numbers, together into the hierarch of
classification by categorizing according to the criteria given.
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Name:_________________________
Due Date:__________
#
‘Species’ Names & Descriptions:
Binomial Name
Species Description
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Hierarchy of Classification:
Now, using the shell numbers and your description of the characteristics of each shell, try to place all
of them into the hierarchy of classification:
a. Are any of the shells that you decided were separate species in the same genus (for example: the
coyote and the red wolf; Canis latrans & Canis rufus)?
b. Which shells (if any) are in different genera but should be in the same family (for example: The
coyote, Canis latrans and the kit fox, Vulpes velox are in different genera but both are in the family
CANIDAE)?
c. Which shells (if any) are in different families but should be in the same order (for example: the
coyote and the lion are both in the order Carnivora)?
d. Which shells (if any) are in different orders but should be in the same class (for example the coyote
and humans are both in the class mammalia)?
e. Which shells (if any) are in different classes but should be in the same phylum (for example the
coyote and the lamprey eel are both in the Phylum Chordata)?
f. Which shells (if any) are in different phyla but should be in the same kingdom (for example the
coyote and a sponge are both in the Animal Kingdom)?
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Cells: The Basic Units of Life
Biol 1409 Lab Exercises
All living matter is composed of cells. Many organisms exist as only a single cell and are referred to as
unicellular, some unicellular species are frequently found in informal groupings of cells called
colonies, and other species are always made up of many, sometimes trillions, of cells and are referred
to as multicellular. All cells arise from other cells. The metabolism of living organisms, all their
biochemical activities, takes place within cells and as a result of cellular activity.
All cells are surrounded by a cell membrane which encloses the cytoplasm (protoplasm) and various
other internal structures. The cell membrane restricts passage of materials in and out of the cell and
helps to protect the cells structural and functional integrity.
There are two major kinds of cells found in living things. The bacterial kingdoms ( the archaea and the
eubacteria) are composed of prokaryotic cells. All other kingdoms ( protists, fungi, plants and
animals) are composed of eukaryotic cells.
Prokaryotes
Prokaryotic cells are smaller and structurally simpler cells than eukaryotic cells. They have a cell
membrane and often a rigid cell wall surrounding the cell membrane and giving the bacterium its basic
shape. Some bacteria also secrete a thick capsule, a jelly-like layer that they use to attach to surfaces
and to protect the organism from harsh conditions. There are no internal ‘organelles’ although there
may by various “inclusions”; ie. crystals of various molecules, droplets of fats and oils, etc. Some
bacteria produce a resistant structure called an endospore which is inside some cells. and some
prokaryotic cells have one or more bacterial flagella for movement.
Some Prokaryote Cell Structures
Cell Wall
Cell Membrane
Cytoplasm
Bacterial Capsule
Bacterial Flagella
Endospores
Pili
protects cell; gives cells its basic shape
selectively allows materials to enter and leave cell
the fluid material inside the cell membrane
sticky outer layer for attachment
motility
great resistance to adverse conditions
attachment and conjugation
Eukaryotes
Eukaryotic cells are usually much larger and structurally more complex compared to bacterial cells.
They also have a cell membrane and cytoplasm. But only fungi, plant and some algal protist cells
have a cell wall, animal and protozoan protists do not have a rigid cell wall and their cells are therefore
more flexible and their shape more variable. Internally, floating in the cytoplasm are various organelles
(small organs), each with a specific function similar to some of the organs found in large complex
organisms. For example, one or more nuclei (singular: nucleus) are found in almost all eukaryotic
cells and are often the largest organelle present. The nucleus contains the genetic material, the
chromosomes, which are made of DNA and control all metabolism. Cells that carry out
photosynthesis (in algae and plants) contain green organelles called chloroplasts which contain all the
enzymes necessary for photosynthesis. Eukaryotic cells also contain mitochondria which contain most
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of the enzymes for extracting energy from organic foods, a chemical process called respiration. Plant
cells often have large vacuoles which store water, starch or other food. Cells that move usually have
small whip-like extensions called cilia or flagella.
In addition to the structures mentioned above eukaryotic cells contain quite a few other organelles and
internal and external structures as shown in the illustrations in your atlas. Many of the organelles in
eukaryotic cells are so small that they are invisible wihout special stains or greater magnification but
you can see at least some of these structures in the lab today.
Some Eukaryote Cell Structures
Cell Wall
Cell Membrane
Cytoplasm
Nucleus
Chloroplast
Mitochondria
Ribosomes
Vacuoles
Cilia & Flagella
Cyst
protects cell; gives cell its basic shape
selectively allows materials to enter and leave cell
the fluid material inside the cell membrane
contains genetic material in the form of chromosomes
organelle used for photosynthesis
organelle used for aerobic respiration
protein factories of the cell
storage containers for water, food, etc
motility
resistant structure formed by some eukaryote cells
All bacteria are unicellular, consisting of individual prokaryotic cells, or colonial. Members of the
eukaryotic kingdoms can be unicellular, colonial or multicellular. In the most complex multicellular
forms, the plants and animals; groups of cells have become specialized to perform specific functions
such as support, movement, communication, etc. These groups of specialized cells are called tissues.
Now that you have familiarized yourself with individual prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells lets look at a
couple different kinds of tissues.
In most multicellular eukaryotes, those in the plant and animal kingdoms, cells are grouped into tissues.
Tissues are groups of similar cells which perform a specific function in the animal or plant. After
looking at cells you will observe a few of the different kinds of tissues found in plants and animals.
Lab Activities:
[Most of these slides will need to be viewed with the high power lens]
Remember: do not use the 100X lens
A. Prokaryote Cellular Structures:
1. Examine the slide below. Note the small size of the cells even at high (400X) magnification.
Note the three major shapes of bacterial cells produced by the presence of a rigid cell wall. Can
you see any internal structures inside any of the cells?
Slide: Bacteria Types, wm
(see handout)
2. Examine the slide below. These cells have been stained so that the capsule appears as a ‘clear’
area around each cell. What is the function of a capsule?
Slide: Bacterial Capsules wm
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(Atlas: 4th fig 3.19)
3. Examine the slide below. Try to find flagella on the bacterial cells. How many flagella seem to
be present on each cell?
Slide: Proteus vulgaris flagella stain
(Atlas: 4th fig 3.12; 5th Fig 3.11)
4. Examine the slides below. Try to find the endospores within some of the bacterial cells. What is
the function of these spores?
Slides: Bacillus subtilis spore stain, smear
Clostridium botulinum subterminal spore, smear
(see handout)
B. Eukaryote Cellular Structures:
5. Examine the models of plant and animal cells. Identify the cellular organelles mentioned in the
above table. How do these two different kinds (plant vs animal) of eukaryotic cells differ? How
are they similar?
Model: plant cell
(Atlas: 4th Table 1.1, fig 1.3; 5th Table 1.1, fig 1.3; 6th Table 1.1, fig 1.3; 7th fig. 103)
Model: animal cell
(Atlas: 4th fig 1.16; 5th fig 1.18; 6th fig 1.18; 7th fig 1.18)
6. Now examine the slide of amoeba below. Amoeba is a protozoan protist; note the lack of a rigid
cell wall. The organism is surrounded only by a thin flexible cell membrane. Note the large
nucleus in roughly the center of the organism. Can you see or identify any other structures
inside the cell? Compare what you see to the illustration in your atlas
Slide: Amoeba proteus, wm
(Atlas: 4th fig 4.10; 5th 4.19; 6th fig 4.20; 7th fig 4.22)
7. Examine the slide below. Spirogyra is a colonial (filamentous) algal protist common in ponds
and ditches. Compare what you see on your slide to the illustrations in your atlas. The
organism on your slide has been stained so it appears blue rather than green as illustrated in
your atlas. Notice the rectangular shape of the cells which is produced by the rigid cell wall
surrounding the cell membrane. Observe the unusually shaped spiral or spring shaped
chloroplast which is used for photosynthesis. Can you see the nucleus inside the cell? Can
you find any other structures or organelles such as the ones labeled in your atlas?
Slide: Spirogyra wm
(Atlas: 4th fig 4.37; 5th fig 4.61; 6th fig 4.63; 7th fig 4.66)
8. In Eukaryote cells most of the genetic material is located on chromosomes within the nucleus.
Most of the time the chromosomes are not visible but during cell division they may become
easily visible. Many of these cells are in the process of dividing, when this happens you can
actually see the chromosomes (made of DNA and proteins) within the cells. Most of the cells
are roughly square in outline due to the presence of a cell wall. Just inside the cell wall is the
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cell membrane but you probably won’t be able to see it as a distinct structure. Also most cells
have a distinct nucleus in the center. The darker dot inside each nucleus is called a nucleolus
and contains another nucleic acid called RNA. In some cells, instead of a nucleus you can see
small ‘sausage shaped’ structures. These are chromosomes that have replicated as the cell
begins the process of division. Why can you see so many cells dividing here but not on the
other slides you have looked at?
Slide: Onion mitosis root tip Allium, ls
(Atlas: 4th fig 2.2; 5th fig 2.5; 6th fig 2.5,7th fig 2.5)
Slide: Drosophila chromosome squash
(see handout)
9. Make a wet mount of an Elodea leaf from the finger bowl on the side table. Elodea is a plant
and its cells are also surrounded by a thick cell wall, can you find it? This time you are looking
at living cells so they should appear pretty much like the illustration in your atlas. Locate the
small oval green chloroplasts, each cell has several, note that the chloroplasts are the only
structures in the cell that are green, yet they are what give all plants their green color. Are the
chloroplasts moving? Sometimes the movement exhibited by living organisms is internal rather
than external as it is in most animals. this internal cellular circulation is called cyclosis. Notice
also that all the chloroplasts are pushed to the sides of the cell. If you look closely (and use
your imagination a little) you will see the most of the interior of the cell is occupied by a large
colorless vacuole which contains water and some organic molecules. If you hunt a little harder
you should also be able to find the nucleus in at least some cells.
Live: Elodea leaves
(Atlas: 4th fig 1.5; 5th fig 1.5; 6th 1.5; 7th fig 1.5)
10. Make a wet mount of some of your own cheek cells following the instructions given. Cheek
cells are thin, pancake shaped cells that line your mouth. Since these are animal cells you will
not see a cell wall, a cell membrane forms the main boundary around each cell. You can also
see a large nucleus in the center of the cell and a nucleolus inside it. Can you see any other
organelles inside these cells, if so can you identify them? As you look around on your slide you
should also be able to see several kinds of bacterial cells. What are their shapes. Compare their
size to that of the cheek cells.
Live: cheek cells
(Atlas: 5th Fig 1.29; 6th fig 1.29; 7th fig 1.29)
C. Some Plant and Animal Tissues:
11. Plant Dermal Tissue
Almost all multicellular organism have some kind of specialized tissue covering the outer
surface of the organism. This tissue can serve a variety of functions depending on the organism
including protection, support, gas exchange, absorption, secretion, among others. Examine the
slide below. Since this is a plant tissue you will see a cell wall surrounding the cell which are
roughly rectangular in shape. What organelles can you find? Notice that not all cells are alike.
Observe pairs of ‘bean-shaped’ cells called guard cells; these cells form pores in the epidermis
to allow carbon dioxide to enter the plant and oxygen and water vapor to escape. Do the guard
cells have chloroplasts? Do they have any other organelles?
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Slide: Typical Monocot and Dicot Leaf epidermis, wm
(Atlas: 4th fig 6.118; 5th fig 6.195/6; 6th fig 6.215 /6; 7th figs 6.215/6)
12. Animal Areolar Tissue
The slide below is an animal tissue that is used as a kind of glue (it is also called “loose
connective tissue”). It is filled with scattered cells and various kinds of fibers in a jelly like
secretion which holds everything together. Can you distinguish between the cells and the
various fibers in this tissue? What organelles can you identify?
Slide: mammal areolar tissue spread
(Atlas: 4th fig 1.42; 5th fig 1.44; 6th fig 1.44; 7th fig 1.44)
13. Animal Blood Tissue
Blood is the only ‘liquid’ tissue that moves or curculates in an animal. It is composed of
several kinds of cells floating freely in a liquid plasma of water and organic and inorganic
molecules. Blood tissue becomes more complex in more complex animals. It also takes on
more functions as it becomes more complex including carrying oxygen and nutrients to cells,
removing wastes, carrying hormones, working as part of the immune system to protect the
body, etc. Looking at the slide below, do the blood cells have a cell wall? What organelles can
you identify?
Slide: blood, frog
(see handout)
14. Animal Adipose Tissue
Adipose tissue is an animal tissue used to store fats or oils(lipids). It is the tissue that many of us
would like to have a lot less of in our bodies than we actually do! Compare your slide to the
illustrations in lab.When you first look at the slide below the tissue appears somewhat like a
honeycomb. The center of the cell is filled with a large oil droplet or fat vacuole where fat is
stored.
Slide: adipose tissue fat (lipid) stained wm
(see handout)
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Asexual & Sexual Reproduction
Biol 1409 Lab Exercise
Most living organisms reproduce both sexually and asexually. Asexual reproduction produces
genetically identical copies (ie. clones) while sexual reproduction produces genetically unique
offspring. There are advantages and disadvantages to both types of reproduction that will be discussed
in lecture. Even in organisms which rely mainly on sexual reproduction for procreation (such as
vertebrates or flowering plants) asexual reproduction appears in the form of growth, wound healing,
tissue repair and replacement, or as more complex processes such as budding, regeneration, and
vegetative propagation.
In this exercise you will study examples & illustrations of various kinds of sexual and asexual
reproduction and begin to learn the terminology associated with them. You might want to make
sketches of some of the slides or illustrations to help you remember what they look like.
Lab Activities:
A. Asexual Reproduction
Asexual reproduction makes identical copies (clones) of the parent. Only a single parent is required
and the process is much quicker than in sexual reproduction. Asexual reproduction is beneficial
when resources are abundant
Some Terms Related to Asexual Reproduction
1. Fission: Is the simplest kind of reproduction in which one organism divides in half and
essentially breaks into two separate organisms.
Slide: Paramecium fission
(Atlas: 4th p17,34; 5th fig 4.31; 6th fig 4.32; 7th fig 4.35)
2. Fragmentation: When an individual organism spontaneously breaks apart into several
separate pieces which regenerate into complete individuals
3. Budding: A very common type of asexual reproduction is budding. The process is similar
to fission but the division is unequal – the bud starts as a small outgrowth of the parent
organism. The bud may eventually detach from the parent and become an individual
organism or remain attached to produce a colony.
Slides: Hydra budding wm
Hydra budding adult, wm
(Atlas: 4th p102; 5th fig 7.10; 6th fig 7.10; 7th fig 7.14)
4. Asexual Spores: Asexual reproduction by spores usually involves a reproductive structure
called a sporangium. Since the sporangium is constructed differently in different organisms
it goes by many names. All sporangia, however, are basically a sac-like structure which
contains a few to many reproductive spores. Asexual spores are all genetically identical.
Look at the materials below and identify the sporangium and the asexual spores each
contains.
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Slide: Rhizopus sporangia wm
(Atlas: 4th p46,47; 5th fig 5.4/5; 6th fig 5.4/5; 7th figs 5.4/5)
Preserved: fern frond with sori
(Atlas: 4th p71,72; 5th fig 6.81 & 6.84; 6th fig 6.90; 7th fig 6.86)
5. Vegetative propagation: Most plants can reproduce vegetatively by making cuttings or
naturally by runners, rhizomes, suckers, etc.
Preserved: various examples of runners, rhizomes, etc
(Atlas: 6th fig 2.2)
6. Polyembryony: In some parasitic animals the embryo is able to clone copies of itself. This
allows a single egg to produce 1000’s of potential individuals and enhances chances that at
least a few will be able to find a new host to complete their life cycle.
Illustrations: fluke life cycle; armadillo quads
(Atlas: 6th 7.58; 7th fig 7.66)
7. Regeneration: Members of every multicellular phylum are capable of some form of
regeneration. This process is used to replace missing or damaged parts rather than to
actually reproduce the entire organism. Some organisms have great powers of regeneration
while others can only regenerate simple cells and tissues. Humans for example regenerate
all their bone tissue about every 7 years and all their blood cells about every 4 months. In
other animals, such as lizards, when a body part is broken off accidentally or by a predator
the animal is able to regrow the entire missing part. Starfish can regenerate new “arms”
when one is broken off and sometimes a single arm can regenerate an entire starfish.
Preserved: regenerating starfish
(see handout)
B. Sexual Reproduction
Sexual reproduction results in genetically unique individuals or offspring. Usually, sexual
reproduction involves the union of two different kinds of sex cells or gametes. In some cases,
sexual reproduction does not involve whole cells but only the exchange of some or all of the genes
on a chromosome between two organisms. Sexual reproduction provides much of the genetic
variation required for evolution and adaptation
Some Terms Related to Sexual Reproduction
1. Conjugation: A ‘+’ and ‘-‘ strain (we can’t really call them male and female) of a species
exchange equal amounts of genetic material or pieces of a chromosome. This process gives
each individual new and different genes than it had before conjugation.
Slide: Paramecium bursaria conjugation wm
(Atlas: 5th fig 4.32; 6th 4.33; 7th 4.35)
2. Sexual Spores: Fungi can also produce sexual spores. Sometimes these sexual spores are
produced inside large ‘fruiting bodies.’ Some of these fruiting bodies are the familiar
mushrooms, toadstools, and truffles. Visually, these sexual spores are indistinguishable
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from the asexual fungal spores discussed earlier but this time each individual spore contains
a unique combination of DNA. Observe the slides and dried examples of mushrooms and
truffles below and note the spores.
Slide: Rhizopus conjugation, wm
(Atlas: 5th figs 5.7/8; 6th figs 5.7/8; 7th figs 5.7/8)
Preserved or Live: misc. mushrooms, brackets, truffles, etc
(see handout)
In most cases, sexual reproduction involves the union of male and female gametes. Most variations
in sexual reproduction depend on the actual form of the male and female gametes, how the gametes
are produced or whether the developing egg has actually been fertilized or not before it begins
development.
3. Heterogamy: When the ‘male’ and ‘female’ sex cells (=gametes) differ from each other
(sperm in males, egg in females) the reproductive process is called heterogamy. This is the
most common type of sexual reproduction in plants and animals.
Slides: sperm cells: Human sperm smear
(see handout)
egg cells:
Mammal ovary Graafian Follicle
(Atlas: = ‘oocyte’ in 4th fig 8.109; 6th fig 9.102; 7th fig 9.106)
4. Pollen: In higher plants, the sperm cell is part of a microscopic pollen grain and the egg is
part of a cluster of cells called the ovule. The pollen grain cannot swim on its own like
sperm cells do, instead it makes its way to the ovum by means of wind, water or animal
dispersal.
Slide: mixed pollen grains
(Atlas: 4th p96; 5th p131; 6th figs 6.246-250; 7th figs 2.257-261)
5. Monoecious Organisms or Hermaphrodites: Only plants and animals produce true
reproductive organs. Monoecious organisms are those containing both male and female
reproductive organs. Most flowering plants are monoecious; the flower contains both
anthers that produce the pollen grains and the pistil that contains the ovule. Many animals,
especially those that are slow, sessile (nonmotile) or parasitic, are hermaphroditic. Use the
illustrations in your atlas to identify the male and female organs in the examples below
Slide: Clonorchis sinensis wm
(Atlas: 4th p109; 5th fig 7.53; 6th figs 7.53/4; 7th 7.761)
Model: flower structure
(Atlas: 4th fig 6.85 & 6.119; 5th fig 6.218; 6th 6.217; 7th fig 6.231)
Illustrations: misc. hermaphroditic organisms:
snail (Atlas: 4th fig 7.54; 5th fig 7.68; 6th fig 7.69; 7th fig 7.76)
earthworm (Atlas: 4th fig 7.68 & 7.72; 5th fig7.86; 7th fig 7.107)
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6. Dioecious Organisms: These are organisms that produce either male or female
reproductive organs and gametes but never both at the same time. Some plants and many
animals, including humans, are dioecious
Illustrations: miscellaneous
7. Sexual Dimorphism: in many dioecious plants and animals (including humans) the males
and females are not identical, but differ in appearance. This is called sexual dimorphism.
For example, in most invertebrates the male is usually smaller than the female while in
higher animals the female is often the smaller of the pair. In addition to size, dimorphism
may also result in differences in structures and color between genders. In birds the male is
usually more brightly colored. What would be the advantages and disadvantages of such
differences?
Slide: Schistosoma male and female
(see handout)
Preserved: misc. birds and mammals
male and female pine cones
Ascaris male and female
(Atlas: 4th fig 7.42-7.46; 5th fig 7.95, 7.97; 6th 7.99; 7th fig 7.118)
Illustrations: miscellaneous
8. Protandry: is the ability in some dioecious animals to actually change their sex based on
size, age, loss of a mate, environmental cues such as changes in temperature, etc. Most
common in aquatic animals such as sponges, corals, brittle stars. The only vertebrates
known to switch genders are fish such as clownfish.
Illustrations: misc. invertebrates, amphibians and fish
9. Parthenogenesis This process only regularly occurs in nonhuman animals. In these cases
the unfertilized egg is able to develop even though it has not been fertilized by a sperm.
Most rotifers, brine shrimp and some social insects such as bees and ants regularly
reproduce this way. Some higher animals such as fish and frogs can also sometimes
reproduce in this way.
Preserved: misc. social insects (bees, ants)
Illustrations: misc. insects and other inverts
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Development & Life Cycles
Biol 1409 Lab Exercise
A. Development and Embryology
All living organisms exhibit some form of growth and development. In Prokaryotes such changes
are hardly noticeable and relatively simple and straight forward. Eukaryotes, however, and
especially multicellular eukaryotes (Fungi, Plants, and Animals), typically show more variations in
their developmental processes than do bacteria. The sequence of discrete, recognizable stages that
these organism pass through as they develop from the formation of a zygote (the fertilized egg) to
the sexually mature adult are referred to as its developmental cycle.
Most plants and animals go through various recognizable immature stages as development
progresses. In vascular plants a seed (essentially an embryonic plant in arrested development), then
a seedling develop and eventually lead to the mature form ( see Atlas 4th 6.84 & 6.147). In the
animal kingdom, also, various developmental stages occur before maturity is reached. Such terms
as embryo, larva, pupa, fetus, , nymph, etc are used to describe these immature stages.
Sometimes, the immature stage survives longer than does the adult; some mayfly nymphs take a
year to develop while the adult lives for only an hour or two. In some organisms, the number and
duration of the immature stages may even vary from one population of the same species to another
and depends on various environmental cues.
1. Embryos: Embryos are immature stages of plants and animals that are not able to feed and
move independently. Observe the example of a plant embryo inside a seed, and some
illustrations of vertebrate embryos below.
Slides: Pinus mature embryo median ls
(Atlas: 6th fig 6.166; 7th fig 6.617)
chick embryo, 72hr
(Atlas: 5th fig 2.16; 6th fig 2.16; 7th fig 2.16)
Model:
human embryo
2. Fetus: Following embryonic development, vertebrates (higher animals) produce an
immature stage that does resemble the adult but that is still completely dependent on the
mother for nutrition and protection for an extended length of time.
Preserved: misc. vertebrate fetuses: human, shark, horse, etc
Model: human fetus
3. Larvae: Larvae are an immature stage found in animals which move and feed
independently and often have no resemblance at all to the adult of the species. Many groups
of animals have characteristic larval stages. A few examples are illustrated below:
Cercaria are the free living immature stage of some parasitic flatworms. They swim from one host to
another, often burrowing through the skin to infect the new host and complete the life cycle
Glochidia are larvae of freshwater clams that are parasitic on the gills of fish until they mature and fall to
the sediment and begin life as freeliving clams. Note the large ‘teeth’ that they use to attach to their hosts.
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Nauplii are the larval stage of many crustaceans such as shrimp, crabs, barnacles, etc. they are an
important part of the plankton of oceans and lakes. Note the appendages used for swimming.
Caterpillars, maggots, grubs and tadpoles are examples of larvae that look and feed quite differently
than the adults that they become (butterflies, flies, beetles and frogs, resp.)
Slides: cercaria wm or redia & cercaria wm
(Atlas: 4th fig 7.34 & 7.37; 5th fig 7.54: 6th fig 7.55; 7th fig 7.66)
mussel glochidia
(see handout)
nauplius barnacle wm
(see handout)
Preserved: caterpillars, maggots, grubs, etc
(Atlas: 4th figs 7.91/3; 5th fig 7.128 & 7.130; 6th fig 7.136-7.138; 7th 7.155)
tadpoles
(Atlas: 4th fig 2.11; 6th fig 2.15)
4. Pupa: A transformational stage in some insects between the larval and adult stage during
which metamorphosis occurs in which the larvae acquire their adult characteristics
Illustrations: miscellaneous
5. Nymphs: Nymphs are immature stages of animals that at least somewhat resemble the adult
of the species and that live and feed independently.
Preserved: mayfly, dragonfly, stonefly nymphs
(Atlas: 4th fig 7.91; 5th fig 7.128; 6th fig 7.137)
B. Life Cycles & Alternation of Generations
Life cycles vary tremendously among the kingdoms. Even some protists have rather elaborate life
cycles. The life cycles of most eukaryotes typically include both asexual and sexual reproduction.
Higher animals are an exception in that they only produce offspring by sexual reproduction. Many
organisms reproduce asexually at one time of the year or under a certain set of conditions and
sexually at other times of the year or under a different set of conditions thus producing a complex
life cycle where asexual and sexual types of reproduction alternate. Members of all three
multicellular kingdoms contain species that alternate between sexual and asexual reproduction. In
some life cycles the form of the organism produced asexually varies considerably in size, shape and
ecology from another form of the same species produced by sexual reproduction. The complete life
cycle of such an organism includes both body forms to complete its cycle and is referred to as an
alternation of generations.
1. Alternation of Generations in Plants:
Ferns are good examples of plants that show alternation of generations. A tiny heartlike
structure called the prothallium is the sexual stage of the fern. It produces egg and sperm.
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Upon fertilization the egg developes into the large, more familiar, fern plant. These large
ferns reproduce asexually by spores.
Slide: fern prothallium
(Atlas: =mature gametophyte in 4th fig 6.51; 5th fig 6.75; 6th fig 6.79; 7th fig 6.80)
Preserved: fern fronds with sori
(Atlas: 5th fig 6.81; 6th 6.86 & 6.89; 7th fig 6.86)
2. Alternation of Generations in Animals:
Jellyfish are good examples of animals that show alternation of generations. A tiny, hydralike polyp, rarely seen, asexually produces tiny jellyfish (medusae, ephyra) that grow into
the large, more familiar jellyfish. The jellyfish produces egg or sperm. On fertilization the
zygote once again becomes the tiny polyp stage
Slide: Aurelia scyphistoma wm
(Atlas: 5th fig 7.24; 6th fig 7.24; 7th fig 7.28)
Aurelia strobila wm
(Atlas: 5th fig 7.25; 6th fig 7.25; 7th fig 7.29)
Aurelia ephyra wm
(Atlas: 5th fig 7.26; 6th fig 7.26; 7th fig 7.30)
Preserved: jellyfish (moonjelly, Aurelia)
(Atlas: 5th fig 7.27 & 7.28; 6th fig 7.27 & 7.28; 7th fig 7.31)
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
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Ecosystems of Texas
Biol 1409 Lab & Homework Exercise
Ecologically, Texas can be subdivided into ten distinct ecosystems (also sometimes referred to as
‘ecoregions’ or ‘biotic provinces’ or ‘habitat types’): Some of the major ones are: The High Plains,
Piney Woods, Cross Timbers, Praries, Edward’s Plateau, Chihuahuan Desert and the Tamaulipan
Province. Each of these is characterized by a specific kind of soil type, rainfall, temperature among
other distinctive features. These physical, geological and chemical features (=the abiotic environment)
result in distinctive plant communities for each ecosystem as well as characteristic animals and other
organisms.
In this exercise you will use field guides from the lab or library or information from the internet to
familiarize yourself with the general features of each ecosystem as well as some of the kinds of living
organisms that are characteristic of each. Some of this information will be relatively easy to find,
other types of information may be more difficult (but not impossible) to come by. The best place to
start is with the field guides made available in the lab.
1. Abiotic Components
Complete the table on your assignment sheet by describing the most distinctive and important
abiotic characteristics of each of the Texas vegetative regions or ecoregions (some references will
use different names for these regions but you should be able to figure them out by looking at a
Texas map)
2. Biotic Components
Now, for only the three central Texas ecosystems, find one or two examples of living organisms
that are found in each of the categories listed in the attached table for the three central Texas
ecoregions. Write their common or scientific name in the table.
The organisms you list must be, as much as possible, distinctive and characteristic for the region. In
other words, try to find things that are only found in one region and not in the others. This
should be relatively easy for vertebrate animals (eg. mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish) and
plants. Identification guides are easily available for these groups.
You will probably have a little more difficulty with invertebrate animals such as insects and other
invertebrates (eg. clams, snails, spiders, scorpions, worms, etc.) but try to at least find species that
are characteristic, if not exclusive, to each particular ecosystem.
Identification guides and web information or bacteria, fungi and protists (algae and protozoa) are
usually not region or ecosystem specific sincet these organisms tend to have much more
cosmopolitan distributions (ie. they have distributions across whole continents or worldwide). For
these groups, just name one or two species that you know would be found there.
3. Summary of Central Texas’ Ecosystems
Finally, on a separate sheet of paper, write a short summary of the abiotic and biotic characteristics
of the three central Texas ecosystems. Stress the differences rather than the similarities of each in
such things as climate, diversity of habitats, diversity of the kinds of plants and animals an
microorganisms living in each.
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
30
Name:________________________________
Due date:_______________
Ecosystems of Texas
Biol 1409 Report
1. Abiotic Components
Some
Natural Region
of Texas
Major Abiotic Characteristics
High Plains
Piney Woods
Cross Timbers
Blackland Prairie
Edward’s Plateau
Trans Pecos
South Texas Plains
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
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2. Biotic Components
Cross
Timbers
Blackland
Prairie
Edward’s
Plateau
Bacteria
Protist
Fungus
Herbaceous
Plant
Tree
or Shrub
Invertebrate
Animal
Vertebrate
Animal
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
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The Bacterial Kingdoms
Collecting & Identifying Bacteria
Biol 1409 Lab Exercises
Bacteria are ubiquitous in the environment. They play a major role in biogeochemical cycling and are
of major economic and medical interest because of the diseases they can cause in plants, animals and
humans. While individual bacterial cells are extremely small and require the use of a microscope to
see, they are sometimes visible to the naked eye as massive microbial communities composed of
millions of cells. Some of the terms used for such groupings visible without a microscope
(macroscopic) are colonies, blooms, biofilms, stromatolites, etc.
Individual bacteria are sometimes difficult to see even with a microscope. Anatomically, the size and
shape of individual cells shows little diversity, even the two Kingdoms of prokaryotes are difficult to
distinguish from each other under the microscope. But biochemically, bacterial species show a greater
diversity than members of any of the other kingdoms of life. Because of their small size and the
difficulty in distinguishing between the 1000’s of bacterial species, their study requires us to try to
culture them in the laboratory in order to determine their biochemical characteristics.
Many bacteria can be grown on artificial media that contains the essential nutrients they need for their
metabolism. Bacteria are generally collected using various types of enrichment and selective culture
media. Enrichment media act like fertilizers to encourage their rapid growth. Selective media contain
inhibitors which prevent some species from growing while allowing others to thrive. But not all
bacteria will grow on artificial culture media. Therefore, any environmental collection generally does
not include all the bacteria that might be present. Only those that grow on such media can be cultured
and identified. Once an environmental sample has been collected the next step is to make a pure
culture of individual bacterial species. A pure culture is one that contains only a single bacterial
species. This is done by special streaking techniques that separate out individual cells on an agar plate.
Each colony that develops on such plates grows from individual cells and is therefore a pure culture of
a single species of bacteria.
Once a pure culture is achieved, individual species of bacteria can be identified using colony culture
characteristics, bacterial morphology (the size, shape and arrangement of individual bacterial cells),
and biochemical characteristics. Slides are made and special stains are used to elucidate the size and
shape and any unique structures (flagella, capsules, spores) produced by the species; Colonies of pure
cultures are described in terms of their colonial morphology. This involves an analysis of their size,
shape, color and other macroscopic features. Wet mounts are made from pure cultures and stained to
determine the microscopic morphology of individual groups of cells and their staining characteristics.
Probably the most important stain in microbiology is the Gram stain in which differences between the
cell walls of bacteria cause some to stain red (Gram negative) and another group to stain blue (Gram
positive). Finally specialized differential media are used to determine some of the metabolic pathways
used by the microorganism. Such media contain one or more specific nutrients and some kinds of
physical or chemical indicator to determine whether the nutrient is being utilized or which end
products are being formed. The indicator causes a change in color or some other easily observed
property when a specific nutrient is utilized.
We will not attempt to make pure cultures or to identify each species of bacteria. This process could
take a week or more for a single species of bacteria. In this exercise you will collect mixtures of
bacteria and grow them on several types of media to see some of the kinds of colonial forms and a few
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
33
of the biochemical reactions that the colonies produce. You will also make a slide and stain your
bacteria to observe their shapes, groupings and relative sizes.
You will also be looking at a variety of prepared slides and fresh material to get an idea of the diversity
of bacteria and to learn a little about their importance to us. While you don’t have to recognize anthrax
or syphilis on sight you should be able to describe the basic shapes of cells or give some examples of
the pathogens that you look at or the economic importance of other organisms that you view. You
might want to make some sketches of what you look at to help you remember it.
Laboratory Objectives:
Ø
Ø
Ø
Ø
Ø
Be able to recognize these organisms as prokaryotes (ie. bacteria)
Be able to distinguish cyanobacteria (blue green bacteria) from other types of bacteria
Be able to name and describe a few examples of bacterial diseases
Be able to list some of the “economically important uses” of bacteria by humans
Be able to distinguish between the three basic shapes of bacterial cells and the common groupings
of cells
Ø Be able to describe how bacteria are cultured and the kinds of media and characteristics used to
identify them
Lab Activities: NO FOOD OR DRINK IN LAB
A. Basic Bacterial Shapes & Cellular Structures
Use the first page of your lab report to illustrate some of the prepared slides below.
1. Examine the slide of three different shapes of bacteria. Note the small size of the cells even at
high (400X) magnification. Note the three major shapes of bacterial cells produced by the
presence of a rigid cell wall. Can you see any internal structures inside any of the cells?
Slide: Bacteria Types, wm (see handout)
2. Examine the slide of the bacterial capsule. These cells have been stained so that the capsule
appears as a ‘clear’ area around each cell. What is the function of a capsule?
Slide: Bacterial Capsules wm (see handout)
3. Examine the slide of bacterial flagella. Try to find flagella on the bacterial cells. How many
flagella seem to be present on each cell?
Slide: Proteus vulgaris flagella stain (see handout)
4. Examine the slides below of bacterial spores. Try to find the spores within some of the bacterial
cells. What is the function of these spores?
Slides: Bacillus subtilis spore stain, smear
Clostridium botulinum subterminal spore, smear
(see handout)
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
34
B. Bacterial Pathogens
Most of our knowledge of and experience with bacteria are in the form of human pathogens.
Look at the slides listed below. Can you see anything distinctive about any of these species? Use
the first page of your lab report to illustrate some of the prepared slides below.
1. The bacterial agent responsible for anthrax.
Slide: Bacillus anthracis wm (see handout)
2. The bacterium responsible for causing tuberculosis
Slide: Mycobacterium tuberculosis wm (see handout)
3. The agent responsible for syphilis
Slide: Treponema wm (see handout)
4. The agent that causes gonorrhoeae,
Slide: Neisseria gonorrhoeae smear (see handout)
5. A bacterial agent of botulism, a type of food poisoning
Slide: Clostridium botulinum subterminal spore, smear (see handout)
C. Economically Important (nondestructive) Bacteria
Use the first page of your lab report to illustrate some of the prepared slides below.
1. Rhizobium is an example of a mutualistic bacterial species. These species are able to utilize the
gasseous nitrogen (N2) as a nutrient to manufacture proteins and other essential organic
molecules that few other organisms are able to metabolize nitrogen in this form. The bacterium
infects the roots of certain plants including string beans, peas, alfalfa, clover and other legumes
and form root nodules. The symbiotic bacteria receive organic foods from the plant in
exchange for nitrogen in a form the plant can use. This allows the plant to grow in poorer soils
or with less fertilizer than that needed by most other plant species
Slide: Legume nodule sec
Preserved: note root nodules on the bluebonnet plant on display in the lab
2. Yogurt is a milk product produced by fermenting the milk with a species of Lactobacillus. This
process produces acids which helps to give yogurt its unique flavor.
Slides: Yogurt wm or Yogurt smear
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
35
3. Spirulina is commonly used as a protein supplement. Make a wet mount of a small amount of
the powder
Preserved: Spirulina powder
(7th fig 3.31)
D. Cyanobacteria (=blue-green bacteria)
Even though these are prokaryotic cells, cells of blue green bacteria are generally much larger than the
bacteria you have seen so far. Many species are also colonial; forming long filaments. Blue-green
bacteria are some of the oldest forms of life to appear in the fossil record. They were some of the first
organisms to do photosynthesis and were largely responsible for generating free oxygen in earth’s early
atmosphere. Today, cyanobacteria are important autotrophs in soils and aquatic ecosystems where they
sometimes form dense “blooms”. Use the first page of your lab report to illustrate some of the prepared
slides and wet mounts of live cultures below.
Live: mixed culture of blue-green bacteria
(Atlas: 6th fig 3.15 - 3.32)
Live: pure cultures of one or more of the following species will also be
available:
Anabaena sp.
Oscillatoria sp.
Eucapsis sp.
Tolypothrix sp.
Merismopedia sp.
Fisherella sp.
Nostoc sp.
Slides: Oscillatoria, wm
(Atlas: 4th fig 3.6; 5th fig 3.20 & 3.21; 6th fig 3.21; 7th fig 3.23)
Nostoc
(Atlas: 4th fig3.2; 5th fig 3.19; 6th 3.19; 7th fig 3.20)
E. Collecting & Culturing Live Bacteria (Part I)
Procedure:
This lab exercise will be spread over two lab periods. In the first period you will collect your
initial cultures. In the second lab you will prepare and stain slides of your samples and
determine some of their biochemical characteristics. You will use any additional time in both
labs to look at preserved slides and other materials that illustrate the diversity of bacteria.
CAUTION: Bacteria are opportunistic, that is, given the opportunity,
they may be capable of causing an infection. Follow safety procedures as
outlined by your instructor when handling living bacterial cultures.
NO FOOD OR DRINK IN THE ROOM
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
36
Possible Culture Media you might be using:
Nutrient Broth Tube
Nutrient broth is an enrichment medium with the same composition as nutrient agar but without the
solidifying agent
Thioglycollate Broth Tube
This culture medium contains special chemicals that remove oxygen from the broth and an indicator to
show if and where oxygen is present. Generally aerobic bacteria grow at the surface, anaerobic bacteria
grow toward the bottom, and facultative (can anaerobic or aerobic respiration) grow throughout the broth.
Nutrient Agar (NA) or Tryptic Soy Agar Plates(TSA)
Nutrient agar and tryptic soy agar are general enrichment media on which a wide variety of bacteria
can grow
Mannitol Salt Agar Plate(MSA)
This is a selective medium, the salt in this agar prevents the growth of bacteria that are particularly
sensitive to high concentrations of salt. It is also a differential medium in that mannitol is a
nutrient that is able to be used by some bacteria as a food source. The agar also contains a chemical
indicator, phenol red, which turns yellow if the mannitol is being metabolized by the colony of
microorganisms.
Spirit Blue Agar(SBA)
This agar is a differentia medium that contains a relatively high concentration of lipids (fats) used by many
species of bacteria as an energy source. The agar contains the indicator, spirit blue, which loses its color and
becomes clear if the lipids are being utilized by a colonies on the plate.
1. Take one of each of the three types of agar plates and “expose it” to likely sources of bacteria or
use the sterile swab to brush some of the sample onto the plate. This should be easy since
bacteria are literally everywhere. Your instructor will offer some suggestions. Only open the
lid long enough to deposit your sample then cover the agar plate immediately. Try to get
samples as suggested below:
NA/TSA any kind of sample will do
MSA
take a sample from yourself, or things commonly touched by humans
SBA
Take samples from soil
2. Take the tubes of nutrient broth and/or thioglocyllate broth and sterile swabs outside of the
building. Use the swab to collect a small amount of soil and drop it into each tube.
3. Return to the lab and for each plate, take a sterile swab and spread the sample by dragging the
swab in a “zig-zag” motion across the plate, turn the plate 90º and repeat the process – this
should disperse the bacteria you have collected across the entire plate and make it more likely
that you will get at least some individual colonies. As you finish with each plate, discard the
swab in the biohazard bag.
4. Use a sharpie to label your plates and tube with your name or initials and the type of sample you
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
37
collected. Then tape your three plates together with masking tape and place them, upsidedown,
on the tray at the instructor’s table. Place the tube of nutrient broth in the test tube rack on the
same tray
5. The instructor will incubate them for a couple of days. In the next lab you will describe the
colonies and observe microscopic characteristics
F. Identifying Bacteria From Your Cultures (Part II)
Three major types of identification techniques will be presented:
1. Characteristics of Colonies (=colonial morphology)
2. Cellular Characteristics (=microscopic morphology)
3. Biochemical testing
1. Colony Characteristics.
a. Count and record the total number of colonies growing on each agar plate
b. Estimate the number of different kinds of colonies on each plate based on any distinctive
characteristics as discussed by instructor
c. Record whether any of the colonies on the MSA plate are utilizing the mannitol.
d. Also, record whether any of the colonies on the MacConkeys plate are utilizing the lactose.
e. Measure and describe up to 3 different kinds of colonies that you find on each of the plates
that you incubated (use descriptive terms from the handout provided). Record your results in
the table provided on your data sheet
[NOTE: If there are no bacterial colonies on one or more of your plates then borrow a plate from your
classmate to describe several different colonies on the second table. Be sure to indicate whose plate you
borrowed and what the source of their sample was.]
2. Cellular Characteristics of colonies from the agar plates
Make a wet mount of the most interesting colonies from each plate. Remember to use aseptic
techniques; keep lids on plates, do not lay lids on tabletop, etc:
a. place a drop of water on a slide
b. use a toothpick to scoop up a small amount of a colony and stir it into the drop of
water
c. place slide on a warm hot plate or in the incubator to allow the water to completely
evaporate
d. when the slide is completely dry remove it from the hot plate
e. dip the slide in a staining jar of methylene blue and leave for 10 seconds
f. remove from the staining jar and place the slide in deionized water for another 10
seconds
g. remove the slide and place between folds of a paper towel and blot dry. Do not rub
the slide to dry it since this will wipe off your bacterial smear
h. view the slides under the microscope and draw and describe the microscopic
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
38
morphology using the illustrations provided. Can you recognize any “groupings” of
cells?
i. record your results on your lab report
3. Nutrient Broth Culture.
a. Make a wet mount of a drop from the nutrient broth tube by placing a drop directly on a
slide, covering with a cover slip and viewing under the microscope.
b. Draw some examples of the different kinds of bacteria that you found in the nutrient broth
on the space provided on your lab report. Be sure to indicate the total magnification that
you used to view the bacteria.
c. Could you see any of the bacterial cells actually moving? (Your instructor will describe how
to distinguish random movements from true motility). Describe any kinds of movements
that they were making. Are any of your bacteria actually motile?
4. Thioglycollate Broth
a. Sketch the pattern of growth that you see in the tube. Based on information from the
instructor, what can you say about the oxygen requirements of the organisms that you
culture?
b. Make a wet mount from your broth and sketch some of the bacterial cells you find.
When you are finished working with your live bacterial cultures:
à
à
à
à
discard the plates in the biohazard bag,
place the tube(s) of broth back in the test tube rack,
discard the any slides you made in the glass disposal box
spray a little disinfectant onto a paper towel and wipe off the stage of
your microscope
à spray down your work area with disinfectant
à wash your hands good
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
39
Name:________________
Date Due:_____________
The Bacterial Kingdoms
Lab Report
Use the spaces below to illustrate any additional bacteria that you looked at from prepared slides & live cultures. Label
drawings and indicate the total magnification used to view & draw each:
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Name:_______________
Name:______________
Name:______________
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Name:______________
Name:______________
Name:______________
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Name:_____________
Name:_______________
Name:______________
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Name:_______________
Name:______________
Name:____________
Magnification:__________
Name:_____________
Name:_____________
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
Name:______________
Magnification:__________
Name:______________
40
Recording Results of Your Own Cultures
Summary of Colony Characteristics
(Colonial Morphology)
1. Estimate the number and kinds of different colonies growing on each of your agar plates:
Source of
Sample
plate
Total # of
colonies on plate
How Many
Different
kinds of
colonies
NA
TSA
can any colonies
metabolize mannitol? _____
MSA
can any colonies
metabolize fats?
SBA
_____
2. Measure and describe up to 3 different kinds of colonies that you find on each of the plates:
color
diameter
(mm)
form
elevation
margin
SBA
MSA
TSA
NA
plate/
source
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
41
Cellular Characteristics
(Microscopic Morphology)
1. Agar Plate Cultures
Draw some examples of bacterial cells in each of your plate cultures in the circles below. Beneath the
circles, indicate the total magnification that you used to view the cells
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
from NA colony
from TSA colony
from MSA colony
from SBA colony
Now, indicate the microscopic morphology (shape and arrangement of individual bacterial cells) that
you drew above using the terms from the handout provided.
NA Plate:
TSA Plate:
MSA Plate:
SBA Plate:
2. Nutrient Broth Culture
Describe their shape (microscopic morphology):
Could you see any of the bacterial cells actually moving?
Describe any kinds of movements that they were making.
Magnification:__________
3. Thioglycollate Broth
Sketch the growth pattern in the tube below & describe oxygen requirements;
then make a wet mount and draw some of the cells you see. Area any motile?
Magnification:__________
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
42
The Protists
(Single Celled Eukaryotes: Algae, Protozoa, Slime Molds)
Bio 1409 Lab Exercises
The “kingdom” Protista includes a diverse assemblage of simple, single celled or colonial eukaryotes.
Most protists are unicellular eukaryotes and have a variety of organelles including a nucleus. They
are generally considerably larger than bacterial cells. Photosynthetic forms contain chloroplasts.
Protists are abundant in most aquatic habitats where they form an important part of the plankton.
Other protists are found in wet soil and other damp environments. They are roughly subdivided into
three major groupings: the plant-like algae; the animal-like protozoa, and the slime molds and fungus
–like protists. You will be examining representative slides and some live and preserved specimens of
each major ‘subphylum’ of protist.
The Algae: plant-like protists
Most algae are aquatic, either freshwater or marine and comprise an important part of the
phytoplankton, but some are also found in soil, on tree trunks, bare rock and in ice and snow . The
algal protists all carry out photosynthesis, and most have a cell wall, usually of cellulose, but
sometimes made of silica or proteins. Most species of algae are unicellular or simple colonial forms.
Many common algae form filaments of cells joined end on end. Some unicellular algae are motile with
flagella or gliding movements. A few algae are large multicellular forms, including the marine
seaweeds that can be 100’s of feet long. But even these very large algae do not have true tissues or
organs as do true plants. In addition, the algae have a much more diverse array of photosynthetic
pigments than do plants which gives some of the groups their names. movement.
The Protozoa: animal-like protists
The protozoa inhabit a diverse array of habitats including freshwaters, saltwaters and soil. The
protozoan protists exist as single celled or as colonial forms. They lack a cell wall but some secrete a
shell-like covering of silica, calcium carbonate or a flexible pellicle. Many protozoa have complex and
specialized organelles within their cells that perform a variety of functions but the protozoa are
heterotrophs and therefore do not have chloroplasts. The protozoa are classified mainly according to
how or if they move: using either cilia, flagella, amoeboid motion. A few are nonmotile. Many have
formed important symbioses with other organisms. Some of the parasitic forms have rather elaborate
life cycles and are of special concern. Some of the major groups (phyla) of protozoa are listed below.
The Slime Molds & Water Molds: fungus-like protists
This small group of organisms includes some of the most interesting but more cryptic protists. The
slime molds are found mainly in damp terrestrial habitats, the water molds include species that are
aquatic and others that are terrestrial plant parasites. At some point in their life cycles most form long
fungus-like filaments called hyphae. Some grow fungus-like fruiting bodies and reproduce by spores
as fungi do. But some species also spend part of their life cycle as protozoan like single celled
organisms that lack cell walls.
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
43
Lab Activities:
2 pts extra credit; bring in a water sample that has a good variety of protists. You must verify with the instructor that you
produced a rich sample.
A. General
The prepared slides and live specimens are organized into the tables below under the general group
to which each belongs. Use the tables to find which materials are available, which are live
cultures and which are prepared slides and to locate an illustration of the organism you are trying to
find in your Atlas. These tables are only given to help you organize the slides and live specimens
you will be viewing. You do not need to individually identify species of protists in this lab. But we
will discuss each of these groups in lecture.
You should be able to recognize all of these organisms as Protists. You should also be able to tell
whether the specimen you are viewing is an alga, a protozoan or a slime mold. You should also
try to locate and identify the various organelles and structures mentioned below.
When viewing the live protists make a wet mount first and look at each. Then, if necessary, make
another slide using the “detain” if you need to slow an organism down to see it better
1. Observe the living specimens
2. Compare the living organisms to prepared slides of the same organism; how are they similar?
how do they differ?
3. Note their means of locomotion (if any), how they move, how fast they move?
4. Did you observe any feeding activity in the live protozoa?
5. How many different kinds of organelles could you find in the live algae and protozoa? In
the prepared slides?
6. Could you find chloroplasts? nucleus? vacuoles?
B. Examples of Unicellular and Colonial Algae
You do not need to recognize individual groups or species of algae in lab, you are only trying to be
able to recognize slides and living examples of Protists and to be able to distinguish the three main
groups of protists from each other.
Algae:
organism
dinoflagellates
Peridinium
live
prepared slide
dinoflagellates wm
Peridinium wm
diatoms
-diatoms wm mixed fw forms
-marine diatoms wm
-diatom test plate
Synedra
Euglena
x
x
Euglena wm
Volvox
x
Volvox sexual stages wm
Oedogonium
x
Oedogonium macrandrous wm
Spirogyra
x
Spirogyra wm
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
atlas
6th 4.18;7th 4.21; HO
4th fig 4.7; 5th fig 4.17; 6th fig 4.17; 7th fig
4.20
5th p34; 6th fig 4.5-4.10; 7th figs 4.5-4.13
HO
4th fig 4.16-19; 5th fig 4.25; 6th fig 4.26-28;
7th 4.29-4.31
4th fig 4.25-28; 5th fig 4.41-43; 6th fig
4.42-45; 7th fig 4.45
th
4 fig 4.32-35; 5th fig 4.54; 6th fig 4.56-62;
7th fig 4.59
4th fig 4.37-38; 5th fig 4.61; 6th fig 4.63-65;
44
7th fig 4.66
Pandorina
Chlamydomonas
x
Ulothrix
Chlorella
Closterium
Pandorina wm
Chlamydomonas wm
Ulothrix wm
x
x
4th fig 4.23; 5th fig 4.35; 6th fig 4.36; 7th fig
4.39
4th fig 4.30-31; 5th fig 4.48-49; 6th fig 4.4951; 7th fig 4.52
4th fig 4.40; 5th fig 4.70; 6th fig 4.73; 7th fig
4.76; HO
HO
coccoliths
C. Examples of Multicellular Algae including Seaweeds
Recognize the preserved and dried specimens below as multicellular, algal protists.
Find the following structures in the appropriate specimens: blade, stipe, holdfast,
float (bladder)
Sketch some examples of the seaweeds in the lab report and label the above parts as appropriate
Algae: The seaweeds & multicellular algae (brown algae, red algae, and some green algae)
organism
preserved
atlas
limeweed, Corallina
x
Chara
live
Irish moss, Chondrus
x
4th fig 4.45; 5th fig 4.83; 6th fig 4.85; 7th fig
Laminaria
x
giant kelp, Macrocystis
Gracilaria
Sea lettuce, Ulva
x
x
x
Nemalion
gulfweed, Sargassum
x
x
4.92
5th fig 4.82; 6th fig 4.88; 7th fig 4.91
4th fig 4.42; 5th fig 4.74; 6th fig 4.78; 7th
fig4.81
4th fig 4.45-49; 5th fig 4.86; 6th fig 4.92; 7th
fig 4.95
D. Examples of Protozoa
You do not need to recognize individual species or groups of protozoa in lab, you are only trying to be
able to recognize slides and living examples of Protists and to be able to distinguish the three main
groups of protists from each other.
Be able to find various organelles and cellular structures in appropriate specimens such as: cell
membrane, nucleus (sometimes more than one), oral groove, contractile vacuole
Be able to find the cilia, flagella or false feet (pseudopodia) on appropriate protozoa
Distinguish between the two major types of reproduction in Paramecium from the slides of each:
asexual reproduction = fission, and sexual reproduction = conjugation
Sketch some examples of the protozoa from living specimens and prepared slides in the spaces
provided in the lab report
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Protozoa:
organism
Amoeba
live
x
radiolarians
foraminiferans
radiolaria wm
-foraminifera wm
-foraminifera strew
-foraminifera fossil
termite
flagellates
Trypanosoma
x
Paramecium
x
Paramecium caudatum wm
-Paramecium in fission
-Paramecium fission wm
-Paramecium caudatum wm
fission stages
Paramecium bursaria
conjugation wm
x
x
x
atlas
4th fig 4.9/10; 5th fig 4.19; 6th fig 4.19/20;
7th fig 4.22/3
HO
HO
HO
Trypanosoma gambiense smear
Paramecium
fission
Paramecium
conjugation
Stentor
Spirostomum
Vorticella
Plasmodium
prepared slide
Amoeba wm
Stentor wm
Vorticella wm
Plasmodium vivax smear
4th fig 4.15; 5th fig 4.24; 6th fig 4.25; 7th fig
4.28
4th fig 4.19/20; 5th fig 4.29; 6th fig 4.29/30;
7th fig 4.36
4th fig 4.22; 5th fig 4.31; 6th fig 4.32; 7th fig
4.35
5th fig 4.32; 6th fig 4.33; 7th fig 4.35
5th fig 4.34; 6th fig 4.35; 7th fig 4.3d
HO
HO
5th fig 4.107-113; 6th fig 4.22; 7th fig 4.25
E. Examples of slime molds and water molds
You are only trying to be able to recognize slides and living examples of Protists and to be able to
distinguish the three main groups of protists from each other.
Identify the fruiting body, hyphae and amoeboid stage on slides and illustrations provided
Sketch some examples of the slime molds from the prepared slides in the space provided in the lab
report
Slime Molds & Water Molds
organism
live
prepared slide
Arcyria capillitum, wm
Arcyria
Stemonitis fruiting body wm
Stemonitis
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
atlas
th
(see 6 fig 4.113-125)
(see 6th fig 4.113-125); 7th 4.118
46
Name:______________________
Due Date:____________
The Protists
Lab Report
B. The Algae
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Name:______________
Name:_____________
Name:_____________
Name:______________
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Name:______________
Name:______________
Name:_____________
Name:_____________
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Name:______________
Name:______________
Name:_____________
Name:_____________
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Name:______________
Name:______________
Name:_____________
Name:_____________
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
47
1. How do blue-green bacteria differ from the algae?
2. In what ways are they similar?
C. Drawings & Descriptions of several seaweeds &/or multicellular algae:
Name:___________________
Name:___________________
Name:___________________
Kind of algae:_____________
Kind of algae:_____________
Kind of algae:______________
Name:___________________
Name:___________________
Name:___________________
Kind of algae:_____________
Kind of algae:______________
Kind of algae:______________
3. Why are seaweeds considered algae and not plants?
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48
4. Define unicellular, colonial and multicellular and and name one specific protist (of the ones
you viewed in lab) that is a good example of each of these terms
D. The Protozoa
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Name:____________
Name:_____________
Name:_____________
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Name:______________
Name:_____________
Name:______________
Name:_____________
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Name:______________
Name:_____________
Name:_____________
Name:_____________
Name:______________
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5. In what ways do protozoa differ from algae?
6. In what ways do protozoa differ from bacteria?
E. The Slime Molds & Water Molds
Magnification:__________
Magnification:__________
Name:______________
Name:______________
7. In what specific ways do slime molds differ from algae? in what ways are they similar?
8. In what ways do slime molds differ from protozoa? In what ways are they similar?
9. List the best ways that YOU can figure out (for the practical!) to distinguish between the three major
kinds of protists and how to distinguish the algal protists from the blue green bacteria if you were to
have to identify them on a lab practical
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50
The Fungi
The Simplest Multicellular Eukaryotes
Biol 1409 Lab Exercises
The fungi belong to one of the three multicellular eukaryotic kingdoms of life and in terms of their
structure, are the simplest of the three. The kingdom is mainly terrestrial and includes yeasts and
molds. Their nonmotile nature and the fact that many grow from the ground and seem to have rootlike and stem-like structures causes many to think of them as plants. However they are not autotrophs,
they do not carry out photosynthesis; they are actually more animal-like in their eating habits, since
they are absorptive heterotrophs. Fungal cells are surrounded by cell walls made of chitin. While
there are some predatory and parasitic forms, most feed on decaying organic matter, especially plants.
Most of us are familiar with members of the kingdom in the form of mushrooms, bracket fungi,
various molds and mildews, and the common “ringworm” and yeast infections of humans.
Some fungi, the yeasts, are unicellular, existing mainly as single cell. ,Most fungi are multicellular and
are called molds. Molds lack true tissues but are comprised of several different types of cells. But
these cells form only very simple structures. In most molds the major part of the fungus ‘body’ consists
of cobweb like strands of cells called hyphae that permeate the soil or rotting log or other organic
matter on which they feed. A mycelium is the entire group of hyphae from a single individual.
Fungi reproduce by both sexual and asexual spores. The yeasts also reproduce asexually by budding.
Most fungi have a life cycle that involves the alternation of sexual and asexual stages. Sexual spores
are usually produced on large, easily recognizable fruiting bodies made out of millions of reproductive
hyphae and commonly called mushrooms, shelf fungi, truffles, etc. Asexual spores are more often
produced on individual reproductive hyphae that can only be seen with magnification.
Laboratory Objectives
In this exercise you will:
v Collect and culture fungi from spores using a culture medium called Sabaraud’s Agar which
is selective for fungi.
v Collect some larger fruiting bodies locally and identify the group to which each belongs
v Use the cultures that you grow to study the basic anatomy of the organisms
v Learn to recognize the difference between sexual and asexual fungal spores
v Learn to recognize the general characteristics of some of the major types of the more
familiar fungi and symbiotic fungal associations
Lab Activities:
1 pt extra credit: bring in a live “wild” mushroom (not from the grocery store). Verify with the instructor before lab.
A. Familiar Fungi: Mushrooms and Other Fruiting Bodies:
1. Identify the cap (pileus), ring (annulus), gills, and stalk (stipe)
of a typical mushroom; if present.
Fresh and Dried Fruiting Bodies
(Atlas: 5th fig 5.27; 6th fig 5.26; 7th fig 5.25-5.27)
2. The Diversity of Fungal fruiting bodies:
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51
Look at the fresh and preserved specimens available. Use the illustrations provided to
identify some of the common types of fruiting bodies. Then record this information along
with th number of the specimen and a sketch of each on your lab report
B. Prepared Slides of Reproductive Hyphae and fungal spores
1. View each of the slides in the table below and learn to distinguish between the reproductive
hyphae that produce asexual spores and those that produce sexual spores. Draw the
reproductive hyphae in the places provided on your lab report and indicate whether they have
sexual or asexual spores
2. Observe the process of budding in living yeast cells. Yeasts are single-celled fungi that
reproduce asexually by budding instead of by asexual spores.
Fruiting Body
Prepared Slides
Budding yeasts wm
Rhizopus sporangia wm
Atlas Figures
of Reproductive Hyphae & spores
Asexual Reproduction
4th fig 5.7; 7th fig 5.10
_____
(if any)
_____
_____
Penecillium wm
Rhizopus conjugation wm
Morchella sec
Coprinus mushroom cs
4th fig 5.2-4; 5th fig 5.3-5.5; 6th fig 5.3-5; 7th
fig 5.4-5
4th fig 5.15-17; 5th fig 5.20 & 5.23;
6th fig 5.20-21; 7th fig 5.20
Sexual Reproduction
4th fig 5.2 & 5.5-6; 5th fig 5.6-5.8;
_____
th
th
cups, morels, saddle fungi
( 5th fig 5.14; 6th fig 5.14)
mushroom, shelf, toadstools
( 5th Fig 5.25; 6th 5.25)
6 fig 5.6-8; 7 fig 5.6-8
4th fig 5.12; 5th fig 5.16; 6th fig 5.16; 7th fig
5.16
4th fig 5.22; 5th fig 5.30; 6th fig 5.30; 7th fig
5.30
C. Living mycelia with reproductive hyphae and spores
Make wet mounts of the sample plates of living molds. In the molds notice the hyphae. Try to
find some reproductive hyphae with spores to determine if they are producing asexual or sexual
spores. On the yeast wet mount look for asexual budding. Record your observations in the lab
report.
D. Living Yeast Cells and Asexual Budding
Make a wet mount with a drop of live yeast culture and observe budding cells
E. Collecting your own Fungus culture:
Use the Sabaraud’s agar plates to collect samples in order to grow fungi. This agar is selective for
molds and yeasts and discourages the growth of bacteria.
F. Observing Living Fungal Cultures:
1. Observe your fungal cultures and notice that each fungus is made up of a mat-like clump, the
mycelium consisting of thin, whitish, threadlike hyphae. Notice also that some colonies have
darker colored areas in their centers that may be green, brown, black or some other color, these
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
52
are the spores.Count the total number of mycelia (individuals) and the number of different
kinds (species) fungi growing on your plate and record this information on your lab report
2. Place the plate under a dissecting scope to see if you can distinguish between the different
mycelia, can you recognize different kinds of reproductive hyphae and spores? Can you see
indivdual hyphae at this magnification?
3. Use your tweezers or toothpick to pinch off a tiny piece of the mycelium. For now, try to avoid
the spores. Use forceps (tweezers) to pick up the small piece and place it in a drop of water on a
slide to make a wet mount. Cover it with a cover slip and view it, describe it and draw what you
see in the appropriate place on your lab report.
4. Repeat the procedure with several other mycelia on the plate and compare them with the first;
are there any differences between the hyphae of the different colonies?
5. Now pinch off another small piece of a mycelium, this time trying to get some of the spores as
well as part of the mycelium and view it under the microscope. Draw and describe what you
see. Compare the reproductive hyphae and their spores with the illustrations provided and the
figures in your atlas to determine if the spores are asexual or sexual spores. Record this
information in your lab report.
When you are finished with your plates of fungi: dispose of them in the Biohazard
Bag
G. Symbiotic Fungi
Some of the most important fungi are those that occur in symbioses with other life forms. Lichens and
Mycorrhizae are two important examples of fungal symbioses.
1. Lichens
Lichens are organisms that grow on rocks, trees, or soil and are often mistaken for some kind of
moss. In fact, they are a symbiotic association between a fungus and either an alga or a
cyanobacterium. Until recently this association has been described as mutualistic, where both
species benefit. The algal or bacterial symbiont gets a protected environment, shading from intense
sunlight, and protection from herbivores. The fungal symbiont gets free food in the form of sugars
made by the photosynthetic algae, and, in the case of a cyanobacterial symbiont, a nitrogen supply
since these are nitrogen fixing bacteria.
Because of these advantages, lichens are found in habitats where neither fungi nor algae would
typically be able to survive. Many lichens are “pioneer species” on new rock and soil and some can
tolerate severe cold. In dry desert conditions the lichen organisms can drastically slow their
metabolism and “wait out” the dry spell, increasing their metabolism again when wet conditions
return. In deserts, some of these slow growing lichens can be over 1000 years old!
More recent studies indicate that the fungal/algal association may not be equally beneficial to both
types of organisms. Some algae found in lichens are found living freely in other habitats, however
the fungal component of a lichen cannot apparently survive naturally on its own and may actually
be weakly parasitic on the algal cells.
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53
Because of this closely interdependent association of the two organisms, lichens are treated as
separate species and given their own binomial names. So far, over 25,000 species of lichens have
been described. Classification is based on the type of reproduction shown by the individual fungal
and algal species; the characteristics of the soredia – a reproductive structure characteristic of
lichens and the growth form of the lichen. Lichens exhibit three types of growth forms:
crustose (‘crusty’)
foliose (‘leafy’)
fruticose (‘shrubby’)
-
thin attached sheets growing over rocks and bark, etc
flattened, leaf-like growths lifting off of the substrate
shrub-like or bush-like growths protruding from the substrate
a. Observe the following slides of lichens and compare to the illustrations in your atlas. Note the
fungal layers, the filamentous hyphae and the algal cells embedded in the fungus just below the
upper layer.
Slides: Physcia thallus sec. (Atlas: 7th fig 5.41)
Slide: Lichen Ascocarps sec.
(Atlas: 4th fig 5.27-30; 5th fig 5.39-5.48; 6th fig 5.39-5.48; 7th fig 5.43).
b. Attempt to identify several lichen specimens by visiting the websites below
http://mgd.nacse.org/hyperSQL/lichenland/
http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/fungi/lichens/lichens.html
http://www.lichen.com/
These sites have photographs, identification guides and keys to help you identify them.
c. dye extracts from Lichens are used to make litmus paper, litmus paper is commonly used in
science labs to detect acids and bases. Follow the instructions given in lab to test the pH of
several solutions using litmus paper.
2. Mycorrhizae
Mycorrhizae are a symbiotic association between fungi and plant roots. The fungal hyphae grow
within and on the surface of the root and root hairs and increase the surface area of the root thus
making the plant more efficient at absorbing water and minerals from the soil. In return, the plant
supplies the fungus with sugar which it uses for energy. Almost all seed plants have fungi
associated with their roots. Most of the mushrooms and toadstools that appear after rain are the
fruiting bodies of these fungi. Plants grown in the absence of these fungi appear smaller and less
healthy.
a. view the slide below and distinguish between the fungus and the plant tissues
slide: endotrophic mycorrhizae, cs
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54
Name:______________________
Due:__________________
The Fungi
Lab Report
A. Familiar Fungi: Mushrooms and Relatives
Make some rough sketches and descriptions of the fruiting bodies that you can see without a
microscope. Be sure to look at both fresh and preserved forms of fungi on display in the lab or that
others have brought in. Can you determine to what common group of fungi each belongs based on the
identification guide?
Specimen #:
Specimen #:
Common Name:
Common Name:
Specimen #:
Specimen #:
Common Name:
Common Name:
Specimen #:
Specimen #:
Common Name:
Common Name:
Specimen #:
Specimen #:
Common Name:
Common Name:
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B, C & D. Observing Other Living Yeast & Fungal Cultures and Prepared Slides:
Use this page to sketch and label the various kinds of asexual and sexual spores from slides and live
cultures. Indicate the magnification you used and the kind of spore below each of your illustrations
Magnification:__________
Name:_____________
Sexual/Asexual
Magnification:__________
Name:_____________
Sexual/Asexual
Magnification:__________
Name:_____________
Sexual/Asexual
Magnification:__________
Name:_____________
Sexual/Asexual
Magnification:__________
Name:_____________
Sexual/Asexual
Magnification:__________
Name:_____________
Sexual/Asexual
Magnification:__________
Name:_____________
Sexual/Asexual
Magnification:__________
Name:_____________
Sexual/Asexual
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
Magnification:__________
Name:_____________
Sexual/Asexual
Magnification:__________
Name:_____________
Sexual/Asexual
Magnification:__________
Name:_____________
Sexual/Asexual
Magnification:__________
Name:_____________
Sexual/Asexual
Magnification:__________
Name:_____________
Sexual/Asexual
Magnification:__________
Name:_____________
Sexual/Asexual
Magnification:__________
Name:_____________
Sexual/Asexual
Magnification:__________
Name:_____________
Sexual/Asexual
56
F. Collecting and Preserving Fungi
1. Look at your Sabaraud’s Agar Plates and count the:
a. total number of mycelia or yeast colonies:
_____________
b. number of different kinds of fungi on your plate:
_____________
2. Use a hand lens to Describe (size, color, color of spores, unusual features, etc) some of the
different kinds of fungal mycelia that you see on the plate):
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
3. View the wet mounts you made of your live fungal specimens from your plate
a. Can you distinguish between mold mycelia and yeast colonies on your plate, if so, how?
b. Sketch the reproductive hyphae and spores of the fungi you collected. Can you determine
whether any spores present on a particular mycelium are sexual or asexual?
Magnification:__________
Sexual/Asexual
Magnification:__________
Sexual/Asexual
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
Magnification:__________
Sexual/Asexual
Magnification:__________
Sexual/Asexual
57
c. How are individual fungal cells similar to the cells of algae, protozoa, and slime molds?
d. How do individual fungal cells differ from the other three cell types?
G. Symbiotic Fungi
1. Lichens:
a. After sketching what you see on the two slides use arrows to indicate which are the fungal
cells and which are the algal cells
slide: Physica thallus
slide: Lichen Ascocarps
b. Describe and sketch each of the three kinds of lichens on display; crustose, foliose &
fruiticose. If you were able to identify the lichen include its scientific or common name
here.
Crustose:
Foliose:
Fruiticose:
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58
c. List the advantages/disadvantages of this symbiosis to the fungus and the
advantages/disadvantages to the algal cells
2. Mycorrhizae
a. sketch what you see on the slide and use arrows to indicate the plant cells and the fungal cells
endotrophic mycorrhizae cs
b. List the benefits of this symbiosis to the fungus and the benefits to the plant below:
c. Describe some of the human benefits of lichens and mycorrhizae.
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59
The Plant Kingdom
Biol 1409 Lab Exercises
The plant and animal kingdoms are the two most complex groups of living organisms; both have true
tissues and true organs, but plants are generally simpler, less complex life forms than are animals.
The Plant Kingdom includes autotrophic multicellular organisms with true tissues and organs.
Common examples are mosses, ferns, cedar & pine trees, cycads, grasses and flowering plants.
Members of the Plant Kingdom (Metaphyta) are distinguished by sharing the following set of
characteristics:
1. multicellular, eukaryotic organisms with cells differentiated into tissues and organs
2. plant cells are surrounded by cell walls containing cellulose; large vacuole in center of
cells store foods and water, and plastids including chloroplast are used for photosynthesis.
Other plastids contain various pigments and storage materials.
3. as autotrophs they use chlorophyll as the main photosynthetic pigment,
4. require free oxygen for energy production (=aerobic respiration)
5. store excess foods as starch (a complex carbohydrate).
6. in most plants cells are differentiated into tissue and simple organs
7. almost all plants are terrestrial and therefore show major adaptations toward a
non-aquatic existence.
8. all plants show herbaceous primary growth, and some vascular plants show woody
secondary growth
9. most plants have a distinctive alternation of sexual and asexual generations. The asexual
stage is referred to as the sporophyte; the sexual stage as the gametophyte.
10. in the gametophyte stage, most plants go through development in which a zygote (fertilized
egg) becomes an embryo (within a seed) before growing into a seedling and finally into the
sexually mature plant
I. The Anatomy of Plants
A. Plant Cells
Plant Cells: In addition to the nucleus found in typical eukaryotic cells plant cells contain some
organelles and structures that can be considered “characteristic” for the kingdom. These include a
cellulose cell wall, chloroplasts containing chlorophyll, plastids that store starch and other materials
and a large central vacuole.
B. Plant Tissues
Tissues are groups of cells that have become specialized for particular functions. The fact that they
have become specialized also means they have become interdependent on each other and cannot
survive on their own as can the cells of simpler multicellular organisms such as seaweeds and fungi.
Most plants are composed of three main kinds of tissues that extend throughout all organs of the plant:
dermal tissue, vascular tissue and ground tissue.
Dermal Tissue covers the outside of all plant organs and protects them from damage and water
loss. Dermal tissue is also important in gas exchange and absorption. There are two kinds of
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dermal tissue depending on whether a plant is an herbaceous or a woody plant. Typically,
herbaceous plants are annuals, or plants that only live one season then die. The stems of annuals
are usually green and carry out photosynthesis. The dermal tissue of these annual, herbaceous
plants is called epidermis; it is a thin clear layer of cells with pores or stomata. Woody plants are
perennial, plants that live for many years, specifically shrubs, woody vines, and trees. The dermal
tissue on woody stems is called periderm; most of the “bark” of a tree is this periderm; it is thick,
corky, not transparent, and offers better protection for larger plants that may live dozens or
hundreds of years.
Vascular Tissue is the “plumbing” of a plant and consists of the xylem and the phloem which
move water, minerals, sugars, and hormones throughout the plant.
Ground Tissue does most of the “work” of a plant; it is specialized for a variety of functions such
as photosynthesis, gas exchange, and food storage. Most of the cells in a plant between the dermal
and vascular tissue is ground tissue.
C. Plant Organs
Organs are groups of interdependent tissues which, together, perform specific functions. The plant is a
collection of vegetative organs – those that carry out the day to day plant activities, and reproductive
organs– those involved in producing offspring. Compared to animals, plants have relatively few
organs, however plant organs can be modified into a huge variety of sizes and forms and their functions
can sometimes also be modified from their more common functions of roots, stems and leaves.
Functionally, all three of the major vegetative organs of plants (roots, stems and leaves) are interrelated
and the tissues within them are continuous throughout the plant.
Roots: are the part of the plant normally found below ground. They are nonphotosynthetic and
usually highly branched.In terms of functions:
1. They are the primary mineral and water gathering parts of the plant.
2. They also help to anchor and to support the above ground parts of the plant body.
3. They are also important in food storage, usually in the form of starch
most roots are either fibrous roots , with numerous branching roots, or tap roots, with one main
root and several smaller side branches. The end of each root is covered by a protective root cap.
Behind the cap are rapidly dividing cells that allow the root to elongate and penetrate the soil to
absorb water and nutrients. Tiny microscopic root hairs extend from the outer cells lining the root.
These root hairs greatly increase the surface area of the root and do most of the work of absorption.
A kind of root is adventitious roots; these include all roots that do not grow underground from the
base of the stem.
Stems: There is no sharp line of demarcation between roots and stems; the stem is typically above
ground and the roots, below ground, but many variations exist. Each plant has a characteristic form
depending on how the stem branches. Stems can be herbaceous and usually green, or woody with
an outer layer of bark. General stem functions include:
1. support the leaves so they are exposed to sunlight
2. Conducting water and minerals from the root to other parts of the plant.
3. Conducting food, which is manufactured in the leaves by photosynthesis, to all other parts
of the plant
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At intervals along each stem are nodes where leaves, buds, branches or reproductive organs arise.
the areas of stem between these nodes are internodes. Buds along the stem or in the axils of a leaf
are called lateral buds. the buds at the tip of a stem or branch are terminal buds.
Herbaceous Stems. Plant stems can be either herbaceous or woody. Typically herbaceous stems
are found on annual plants, or plants that only live one season then die, they are usually green and
carry out photosynthesis. The epidermis of the herbaceous stem secretes a waxy cuticle and is
dotted with openings called stomata that allow oxygen and carbon dioxide to to move to and from
the cells below.
Woody Stems. Woody stems are found in perennial plants, specifically shrubs, woody vines, and
trees. Both conifers and some flowering plants are perennial and therefore produce woody stems.
The dermal layer on woody stems is called periderm; a much thicker, opaque, corky protective
layer. Woody stems often bear scars from the previous years growth; leaf scars, bud scars, etc.
Also, since woody stems are covered with a protective corky layer which helps to waterproof the
plant, they sometimes have pores called lenticels that allow gas exchange for the cells deeper
inside.
Leaves: The main function of the leaf is to carry out photosynthesis. Photosynthesis uses energy
from sunlight to convert carbon dioxide and water into sugar and oxygen gas. The sugar is then
sent to all plant cells where it is broken back down into carbon dioxide and water to release the
energy needed for the cells to perform their various functions. By making sugar the plant is able to
“package” the sun’s energy and send it tow wherever in the plant energy is needed. Functionally
then leaves:
1. Carry out most photosynthesis for most plants
2. Exchange of gasses; carbon dioxide in and oxygen gas out
3. Evaporation of water from leaves serves as mechanism for transpiration which moves
nutrients from roots throughout the plant
4. Leaves can also absorb water and minerals to some degree
Of all the plant organs, leaves are the most variable in size, shape and function. A typical leaf is
made up of a stalk-like petiole and an expanded flattened blade. At the base of the petiole is
typically an axillary bud and one or two small stipules. Some leaves, called simple leaves, have a
single blade attached to the petiole. Others, called compound leaves have several small leaflets
attached to the stem by a single petiole. Most species of plants can be identified by the
characteristic size, shape, color, margins, arrangement and veination of its leaves.
Lab Activities:
2 pts. Extra Credit: On the first day of the plant kingdom labs bring in 3 different examples of living plants that each show
roots, stems and leaves. Check in with the instructor before the beginning of class
A. Plant Cells
1. Study the illustrations and model of plant cells to find the following organelles and structures:
cell wall, nucleus, chloroplasts, cell membrane, central vacuole, mitochondria, plastids
Model: plant cells
(Atlas: 4th fig 1.3; 5th fig 1.3; 6th fig 1.3; 7th fig 1.4)
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
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2. Make a wet mount of an Elodea leaf. try to get the smallest thinnest leaf or piece of a leaf you
can find. Study the cells of the Elodea under the microscope and find as many of the above
organelles as you can.
Also, notice that in many of the cells these organelles are moving in a circular motion within the
cell.
Live: Elodea
(Atlas: 4th p3; 5th fig 1.5; 6th fig 1.5; 7th fig 1.5)
B. Plant Organs
1. Identify the three major vegetative organs, the root, stem and leaf on the ‘typical’plants (living
and preserved) and illustrations available.
Living & Preserved plant material
2. Identify the following structures & terms on living and preserved plants and illustrations:
a. root: fibrous root, tap root, adventitious roots
b. stem: node, internode, terminal bud, axillary bud, lenticel, leaf scars
c. leaf: petiole, blade, stipule, axillary bud, veins, leaf hairs
Living & Preserved plant material
3. view the slides below and identify the root cap at the tip of the growing root and root hairs (if
visible):
Slide: root hairs (Atlas: 7th fig 6.179)
Slide: corn root tip zea ls
(Atlas: 5th fig 6.159-160; 6th fig 6.178-179; 7th fig 6.179-81)
4. View the slide below and be able to recognize: stomata, guard cells, leaf hairs (trichomes).
Look closely and find small pores (=stoma) in the epidermis, especially the lower
epidermis.These pores allow for gas exchange. On each side of the stoma (pleural = stomata)
are small guard cells that can open and close the pore. On this same slide note the leaf hairs or
trichomes.
Slide: monocot & dicot leaf epidermis wm
(Atlas: 5th fig 6.196; 6th fig 6.216; 7th fig 6.219-20)
5. Study the dried and fresh materials and note the variety of leaf forms in terms of venation,
margins, complexity and their arrangement on the stem. Be able to use this figure to describe
the leaves of plants available.
Be able to recognize the difference between simple and compound leaves.
Living & Preserved leaves
(Atlas: 4th fig 6.110; 5th fig 6.184; 6th fig 6.203)
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C. Plant Tissues
Use your atlas and illustrations provided to find each of the three tissue types in the slides of roots,
stems and leaves below.
1. Root:
a. The dermal tissue consists of a layer of epidermis cells around the outside of the
section
b. the vascular tissue is represented by the xylem and phloem in the center of the cross
section. Be able to distinguish between the xylem and the phloem cells
c. all the rest between the epidermis and the vascular tissue is ground tissue, called the
cortex. In this case the ground tissue is used for food storage
Slide: Ranunculus mature roots, cs
(Atlas: 4th fig 6.94; 5th fig 6.151, 6.161-162; 6th fig 6.180-181; 7th fig 6.183)
2. Herbaceous Stem:
a. again, the dermal tissue is represented by a layer of epidermis
b. the vascular tissue is represented by vascular bundles composed of xylem and
phloem cells scattered throughout the stem cross section. Be able to distinguish
between the xylem and the phloem in the vascular bundles
c. The cells between the epidermis and the vascular bundles are part of the ground tissue.
Model: stem cross section
Slide: Typical monocot and dicot stem, cs
(Atlas: 4th fig 6.102; 5th fig 6.169,6.170,6.173; 6th fig 6.189-96; 7th fig 6.191-4)
3. Leaf:
a. The dermal tissue consists of a single layer of epidermis on the upper and lower
surface of the leaf section.
b. The vascular tissue is represented by the “veins” of a leaf. Each branch of a vein
is seen in cross section (cs) as a vascular bundle containing xylem and phloem cells
c. In leaves the ground tissue is called mesophyll which does most of the photosynthesis,
and where gas exchange occurs. Identify the mesophyll on the leaf model and the slide
labeled cs.
Model: leaf section
Slide: Ligustrum leaf, cs or Privet Leaf cs
(Atlas: 4th fig 6.115-6; 5th fig 6.190-1,6.196; 6th fig 6.215-6; 7th fig 6.125-6)
II. Plant Life Cycles
Many plants show an alternation of generations between individuals that reproduce asexually and
those that reproduce sexually. The plant that reproduces asexually is called the sporophyte and the
plant that reproduces sexually is called the gametophyte. In some primitive plants these two forms are
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
64
completely separate individuals and one tends to dominate in the life cycle while the other is much
smaller and rarely seen. In seed producing plants the sporophyte and gametophyte are part of the same
individual plant specimen but the gametophyte has been greatly reduced and is now microscopic in
size.
The gametophyte produces male and female sex organs, which in turn produce the sperm and egg. In
primitive plants the sperm travels from the male to the female plant in water to fertilize the egg and
produce a zygote. The zygote develops into the sporophyte plant. The sporophyte, in primitive
plants, produces spores. Finally, the life cycle is completed when spores are released they grow into
the gametophyte plant.
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
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III. Plant Identification
Typically the distinctive reproductive organs of a plant are used to identify its species. Plants produce
only a few kinds of true vegetative organs. But even vegetative organs vary in such diverse ways that
the most common species, at least, can be identified from these structures as well. Leaves are one of
the most characteristic and distinctive organs of each plant species and it is relatively easy to identify a
plant species with just a few of its leaves and twigs.
In this exercise you will practice identifying several common central Texas woody plants by using a
dichotomous key. That is, a key that asks you to select, from a pair of choices and proceeding through
couplets of choices until you arrive at the species name.
You must always begin at the first couplet and then proceed to the couplet indicated by each
choice that you make.
You will need a hand lens or a dissecting scope to be able to see some important structures.
Because of the diversity of leaf shape, size, surface features, etc a list of terminology is provided to help
you interpret each pair of choices. You do not need to learn or memorize these technical terms.
««««««««««o»»»»»»»»»»
A Key to Some Common
Central Texas Trees, Vines & Shrubs
1a. leaves with distinct petiole and blade
b. small, scalelike leaves oppressed onto reddish brown twigs;
with sticky resinous secretions
2
2a. leaves simple
b. leaves compound
3
19
3a. leaves alternate
b. most leaves opposite or whorled
4
17
4a. leaves linear or lanceolate
b. leaves obovate, obdeltoid or spatulate
5
6
5a. leaves up to 3” long
b. leaves 3” to 6” long
Poverty Weed Baccharus angustifolia
Gulf Black Willow Salix nigra
6a. leaves dark green glabrous above, tomatose below,
no spines on branches
b. leaves not as above
Texas Persimmon Diospyros texana
8
8a. leaves cordate to deltoid
b. leaves not as above
9
12
9a. leaf margins entire
b. leaf margins serrate, lobed, or crenate
10
11
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
Eastern Red Cedar Juniperous virginiana
66
10a. leaf tips acuminate, base acuminate to acute
b. leaf tips broadly rounded to obtuse, base cordate
11a. blade 2.5-5” long; leaf margins entire to sinuate, or toothed
or 3-5 lobed; lower surface of leaf with white felty
leaf hairs, some leaves modified into tendrils
b. leaf tip distinctily acute to acuminate, leaf margins
crenate-serrate, leaf base truncate, lower surface of
leaf pale green and glabrous
12a. leaf margins deeply incised with 3 to 7 lobes
b. leaf margins entire to serrate
13a. leaves with 3-5 toothed lobes, bright green above, paler
and densely pubescent along veins below
b. leaves with 5-7 aristate lobes, terminal lobe often longest
both top and bottom of leaf glabrous
Chinese Tallow tree Sapium sebiferum
Texas Redbud Cercis canadensis
Mustang Grape Vitis candicans
Eastern Cottonwood Populus deltoides
13
14
Sycamore Platanus occidentalis
Texas Oak
Quercus texana
14a. leaf margins serrate to serrulate, apex acute or obtuse, dark
green stiff , scabrous & rough to touch above , pubescent
below; older twigs with brown thin lateral corky wings
b. leaf margins entire or mostly so, other characters not as above
Cedar Elm Ulmus crassifolia
15
15a. leaves thick, oblong or elliptical, dark green and lustrous,
leaf margins often curled under; some leaves may
have sharp spines
b. leaves otherwise
Live Oak Quercus virginiana
16
16a. leaves ovate-lanceolate, leaves thin, light green and
scabrous above, paler beneath, conspicuously
3 veined on underside of leaf; leaf base wedge-shaped and
halves often unevenly meet petiole
b. leaves obovate-oval, base cuneate or rounded;
short or absent petioles
17a. most leaves opposite; only a few whorled, if any
b. most leaves whorled or clumped
18a. leaves 1-3”long, light green and pubescent above and
below; base rounded or truncate
b. leaves dark, dull green and leathery, glabrous above
and below
Hackberry Celtis laevigata
Crapemyrtle Lagerstroemia indica
18
33
Japanese Honeysuckle Lonicera japonica
29
19a. leaves palmately compound
b. leaves pinnately compound
20
23
20a. most leaves with 3 leaflets
b. most leaves with 5 leaflets
21
22
21a. leaflets 2-2.5” long; entire; stem square in cross-section
b. not as above
Winter Jasmine Jasminum nudiflorum
32
22a. leaves opposite; leaflets linear to lanceolate; margins entire
b. leaves opposite adhesive tendrils; leaflets elliptical or oval
and coarsely serrate
Chaste Tree Vitex agnus
23a. leaves bi -or tri- pinnately compound
b. single pinnately compound leaves
30
24
Virginia Creeper Parthenocissus quinquefolia
24a. compound leaves 10-15” long; 7-13leaflets, each to 3” long
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
67
and 2” wide, leaflets ovate to elliptical, coarsely serrate
margins and grooved petioles
b. leaves not as above
25a. compound leaves 4-8” long; , 5-13 leaflets per leaf,
leaflets elliptical to oblong or oval; 1-2.5” long and
1” wide margins entire, short or no petiole on leaflets
b. leaves not as above
26a. compound leaves 9-20” long; with 9-17 leaflets, leaflets 4-8”
long, with doubly serrate margins, with little or no
petioles, leaves aromatic when crushed; orange/brown
lenticels on twig
b. compound leaves 8-16”long with 25-30 leaflets, and
small (<1/3”); twigs green
29a. leaves 2-4.5”long, >1” wide
b. leaves 4-6”long, <1”wide, with conspicuous yellowish
main vein, most leaves opposite, some whorled
30a. leaves bipinnately compound most with only 2 branches;
each with 12-20 leaflets, each leaflet ~2” long and 1/4”
wide; twig with stout spines up to 2” long
b. leaves not as above
31a. compound leaves bi or tri pinnately compound, 3-8” long;
leaflets 1/2-1.5” long, ovate with margins coarsly toothed,
incised or lobed
b. compound leaves 12-20” long; evergreen; leaflets ~2” long,
elliptical, entire with bulbous swelling at base of petiole;
new foliage often red
32a. leaflets deeply incised; thick and spiny
b. mostly 3 but up to 7 leaflets; with serrate margins; blades
thin, light green and pubescent
33a. most leaves oblanceolate or obovate, >1.5” long, bright green
and glabrous above & below; blades wavy or curled inward
at margins, petioles reddish at base
b. most leaves oblanceolate, <1.5” long, dark green and shiny
above, much paler and glabrous below;
shorter branches terminate in spines
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
Trumpet Creeper Bignonia radicans
25
Mountain Laurel Sophora secundiflora
26
Pecan Carya illinoiensis
Paloverde Parkinsonia aculeata
Japanese Privet Ligustrum japonicum
Common Oleander Nerium oleander
Mesquite Prosopis juliflora
31
Pepper Vine Ampelopsis arborea
Heavenly Bamboo Nandina domestica
Agarita Mahonia trifoliata
Box Elder Acer negundo
Pomegranate Punica granatum
Pyracantha Pyracantha angustifolia
68
Name:_______________________
Leaf Identification Exercise
#
example
Sequence of choices you used to
arrive at your identification
1aà2aà3aà4bà6bà8aà9aà10b
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
ID
Common Name
Texas Redbud
ID
Species
Cercis canadensis
69
IV. Plant Diversity
The plant kingdom contains over a dozen distinct phyla. In this class we will group all plants into four
major kinds based on their strucrture and life cycles.
A. Mosses & Allies
The mosses represent the simplest members of the plant kingdom. Besides “true” mosses this group
also includes liverworts & hornworts. Mosses, because they lack vascular tissues, are typically only
a few inches tall and found mainly in moist place. The gametophyte is the dominant, more
permanent stage in their life cycle. The gametophytes of mosses appear as short leafy stems
growing close to the ground. They have simple, nonvascular “leaves”, “stems” and rootlike
rhizoids. At the tip of each leafy stalk are the sexual organs, either antheridia which produce the
sperm cells or archegonia which produce the eggs. During rains the sperm cells travel to the
archegonia to fertilize the egg producing a zygote. The zygote develops within the archegonium
and produces a long, naked stalk with a capsule at the end. This stalk and capsule is the
sporophyte stage of the moss (actually growing on the female gametophyte). The sporophyte is
only a temporary structure and falls off after the asexual spores are released.
Lab Activities: Mosses (Atlas:
5th fig 6.23-40; 6th figh 6.27)
2 pts. Extra Credit: Bring in a live example of Mosses, liverworts or hornworts.Check in with the
instructor before the beginning of class
1. Observe several examples of living and preserved mosses & allies.
Living & Preserved Specimens & Illustrations of mosses, liverworts,
hornworts
(Atlas: 6th fig 6.1, 6.2, 6.17, 6.30; 7th fig 6.22 &ff)
2. On the true mosses you should be able to find: “leaves”, “stems”, and rhizoids
Living and Preserved mosses
(Atlas: 5th fig 6.28; 6th 6.27 & 6.31)
3. Observe the slides below to find the sexual reproductive organs of mosses:
antheridia:
Slide: Moss Antheridial Head, Polytrichium ls
(Atlas: 4th fig 6.17 & 6.21; 5th fig 6.36; 6th fig 6.35; 7th fig 6.36-7)
archegonia: Slide: Moss Archegonial Head, Mnium ls
(Atlas 6.17 & 6.19; 5th fig 6.35; 6th 6.34; 7th fig 6.35)
4. In mosses, the sperm swims over the the archegonium to fertilize the egg and the egg, still in the
archegonium, develops into the sporophyte. The sporophyte remains attached to the
gametophyte. The sporophyte consists of a spore producing capsule which may or may not be
on a long stalk. Observe the slide below to see the capsules and the asexually produced spores,
compare what you see on the slides to the illustrations in your Atlas?
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
70
Slide: Moss capsule, Polytrichium, ls
(Atlas: 4th fig 6.17 & 6.22; 5th fig 6.37; 6th fig 6.38; 7th fig 6.39)
B. Ferns & Allies (Seedless Vascular Plants)
The ferns and their allies represent the simplest kinds of vascular plants. Besides “true” ferns this
group includes club mosses, horsetails and whiskferns. Vascular Plants have vascular tissues, the
xylem and the phloem, which move water and nutrients throughout the plant. Water and inorganic
nutrients are absorbed by the roots and mainly move in the xylem up to stem to the leaves where
some is used in photosynthesis and some evaporates into the air. Organic nutrients are move up and
down the plant in the phloem. Some foods such as sugars are made in the leaves by photosynthesis
and moved to other tissues for use as energy or to storage areas in the stem or root for later use by
all parts of the plant. This vascular tissue allows a much more efficient distribution of materials
throughout the plant body and therefore allows the plant to grow considerably larger than mosses.
Also, special cells of the xylem provides added support for the plant which also allows it to grow
larger. The presence of a vascular system also allows these simple plants to grow in drier habitats
than those in which mosses are found since the roots can grow into the soil and absorb water and
minerals.
The ferns are the largest and most diverse phylum of seedless vascular plants. Most are tropical
but many are used as house plants throughout the world. They have typical roots, stems and most
have large leaves called fronds. A portion of the stems of some ferns and most other seedless
vascular plants grow underground and are called rhizomes. The sporophyte is the dominant, most
visible stage in the life cycle. Most people have seen a fern ‘sporophyte’, few have seen a fern
‘gametophyte’ The sporophyte asexually produces spores int a sorus or in groups of sori called an
indusium found usually on the underside of the frond. Sperm and egg are produced in antheridia
and archegonia on the small heart-shaped gametophyte plant. Like the mosses, the sperm of the
gametophyte plant requires water to swim to the egg. The small gametophytes , therefore, are still
tied to water even though the sporophytes can grow in drier areas.
Lab Activities: Ferns (Atlas:
5th fig 6.75-91; 6th fig 6.79-99)
2 pts. Extra Credit: Bring in a living example of a fern, horsetail, whisk fern, or club moss. Check in with the
instructor before the beginning of class.
1. Observe and distinguish between the preserved and live specimens of ferns and their relatives
that are available.
Living and Preserved Specimens & Illustrations of ferns and allies
(Atlas: 6th fig 6.42, 6.48, 6.56, 6.66-686.80-85; 7th fig 6.43&ff)
2. Observe the fern sporophytes and locate the frond, fiddle heads, rhizome sori and roots
Living & Preserved ferns and illustrations
(Atlas: 4th p71-73; 5th fig 6.75; 6th fig 6.79, 6.81, 6.90; 7th fig 6.82)
3. Observe the slide below and identify the vascular tissue (xylem and phloem) as indicated on the
attached illustration
Slide: Fern combination, root, stem, stipe
(Atlas: 5th fig 6.53; 6th fig 6.44, 6.46; 7th see fig 6.47)
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
71
4. The typical fern plant is the asexual sporophyte stage of the fern life cycle. Ferns produce
spores from groups of special sporangia on the fern frond called sori.
These groups of sporangia are covered by an umbrella-like indusium. Identify the fern spores
on the slide below:
Slide: fern indusium sec
(Atlas: 4th fig 6.44-45; 5th fig 6.75,6.85; 6th fig 6.92; 7th fig 6.93)
5. Each spore that is released will grow into the tiny prothallium, the gametophyte, to complete
the cycle. Ferns do not produce flowers, their sexual reproductive organs are simple and very
small. In the fern life cycle the gametophyte is a tiny heart-shaped organism which is rarely
seen because of its small size. On the gametophyte are the male and female reproductive
organs; the antheridium and archegonium
Slide: fern prothallium male and female, wm
(Atlas: 5th 6.43, 6.51; 6th fig 6.79; 7th fig 6.95-8)
or fern antheridia wm and fern prothallium wm archegonium
(Atlas: 5th fig 6.87; 6th 6.79, 6.94, 6.95; 7th fig 6.95-8)
6. The antheridium produces sperm cells which “swim” or are washed to the archegonium of
another gametophyte to fertilize the egg. The zygote produced by fertilization of the egg grows
within the archegonium on the prothallium into the young sporophyte. Find the young
sporophyte growing from a fertilized egg in archegonium on the slides below:
Slide: fern young sporophyte wm
(Atlas: 4th fig 6.43; 5th fig 6.75; 6th fig 6.79; 7th fig 6.80)
The young sporophyte eventually grow into the large familiar “ferns” commonly used as house
plants. These are the sporophyte stage of the fern life cycle.
C. Conifers & Allies (Gymnosperms)
This group includes cedars, pines, spruce & fir trees as well as ginkgoes and mormon tea. In
conifers the leaves are usually in the form of needles or small triangular scales. They generally
have a thick layer of cuticle to protect them from water loss since most conifers tend to grow in
relatively dry areas.
Almost all conifers (and many flowering plants) are perennial and have thick woody trunks with
bark rather than herbaceous stems. The bark replaces the epidermis for protection of the stem in
large woody plants.
Plants that live more than one year, ie. perennials, produce secondary growth each year. In woody
plants there are layers of meristem (embryonic) cells called the cambium, that produces this
secondary growth each year. This cambium is found in the vascular bundles of the stem between
the xylem and phloem. Each year this cambium produces new layers of xylem and phloem cells.
Differences in the size of the cells produced throughout the growing season produce the familiar
“growth rings” in the wood. Xylem grows much faster than phloem and virtually all of the
“wood” of a tree is xylem cells with the oldest cells closer to the center of the trunk, these older
cells are often darker and are called heartwood. The layers of phloem, on the “outer-side” of the
cambium, along with the cortex and the periderm make up the bark of a tree.
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
72
Conifers are one of two major groups of vascular plants that produce seeds during their
reproductive cycle. In ferns and mosses the fertilized egg (=zygote) developed directly into the
sporophyte without forming a seed. In conifers the life cycle is considerably different. The main
reproductive organs are male and female cones. The male cone produces sperm cells inside
microscopic pollen grains. The female cone produces the egg inside groups of cells called ovules.
The tiny pollen grain is released from the male cone and travels by wind to the female cone to
fertilize the egg. Conifers are, therefore, no longer tied to water for sexual reproduction. Among
other major adaptations that allow the conifers and their allies to grow in even drier habitats than
their ancestors are:
-
a well developed vascular system extending through more complex roots, stems and leaves
the root system is much better developed and can extend much deeper into the soil or spread
over a much larger area to absorb more water for the plant
in the stem, production of woody tissues from the vascular sytem which allows much larger,
stronger plants more resistant to drying and the wind
most have narrow needle or scale like leaves with a thick cuticle to prevent water loss
The Conifers are distinct from the flowering plants in that the seeds are not produced in a flower
and fruit, they are instead “naked seeds”. The seeds are borne on the female cone. The seed
enhances dispersal and survival of the plant in harsh or dry conditions. At the center of the seed is
the embryo. The embryo itself consists of an embryonic root and stem and embryonic leaves. The
embryo is surrounded by stored nutrients called the endosperm. The dormant embryo and its food
supply are enclosed within moisture resistant coatings to protect them.
Lab Activities: Conifers ( Atlas:
5th fig 6.123 – 6.146; 6th fig 6.101-110, 6.124-125, 6.140, 6.149)
1 pt Extra Credit: bring in a branch of any conifer other than a cedar tree. Check in with the
instructor before the beginning of class.
2 pts Extra Credit: bring in a branch of a ginkgo tree or mormon tea shrub. Check in with the instructor before the
beginning of class.
1. Observe examples of conifers and allies in the material provided
Living and Preserved and Illustrations of conifers and allies
( Atlas: 5th fig 6.123 – 6.146; 6th fig 6.101-110, 6.124-125, 6.140, 6.149)
2. Observe the examples of conifers and note the vegetative organs; the roots, stems and leaves,
and the reproductive organs; the male and female cones.
Living and Preserved and Illustrations of conifers
3. Perennial, woody stems are found in most conifers and many flowering plants. Their basic
anatomy is similar. Study the materials below to learn about the structure of woody stems:
a. Wood Sections: Examine the pieces of logs and cut wood available. Can you see the
growth rings? Use a magnifying glass or dissecting scope to examine the growth rings more
closely.
Pieces of logs & cut wood
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
73
b. Bark: Bark consists of 2 kinds of plant tissues; periderm (including cork) and phloem. Use
a sharp scalpel or razor blade and make a very thin section of cork. Place this section on a
slide and view it under scanning power of the microscope. Compare your slide to the
illustration provided. Diagram and describe what you see on your lab sheet. What is the
function of cork?
Pieces of logs, bark and cork
c. Woody Stem at the end of the third year: Examine the slide below and find the
structures indicated. Understand the relationship between each growth ring and the layers
of xylem and phloem and periderm
Slides: Tilia, Basswood, third year stem cs or
Basswood three year stem, Tilia cs
(see handout)
d. Pine Stem. Examine the slide below and be able to identify which is the younger and which
is the older and how old each stem is.
Slide: Pine Stems younger & older cs
4. Observe the slide of a cross section of a pine leaf and find the following structures: epidermis,
vascular tissue and ground tissue, resin ducts, stomata
Slide: pine leaf – 3 needle , cs
(Atlas: 4th p79, 6.78; 5th fig 6.132; 6th fig 6.147; 7th fig 6.148)
5. Study the life cycle of a typical conifer on the attached illustrations (Atlas: 4th p 76 ‘5th fig 6.123;
6th fig 6.137; 7th fig 6.137)
6. Observe examples of the cones; be able to recognize and distinguish between male (staminate)
and female (ovulate) cones.Use a magnifying glass to determine whether any of the male cones
still contain pollen. Do any of the female cones contain seeds?
Preserved: male and female cones
(Atlas: 5th fig 6.79, 6.81, 6.,135, 6.136, 6.140; 6th 6.137; 7th fig 6.150)
7. Observe the slide below and note the structure of the male cone and identify the pollen grains
(=microsporangia of your atlas)
Slide: Pine, staminate cone, ls
(Atlas: 4th fig 6.81; 5th fig 6.141,6.142; 6th fig 6.157-158; 7th fig 6.158-9)
8. Observe the slide below and compare to the illustrations attached to lab exercise; note the
‘wings’ on each grain.
Slide: Pine mature pollen wm
(see handout; 7th fig 6.160)
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
74
9. Observe the slide below and again, note the structure of the female cone and identify the ovule
and scales
Slide: Pine young ovulate cone
(Atlas: 4th fig 6.80; 5th fig 6.135-8; 6th fig 6.153-4; 7th fig 6.155)
10. Observe a section of a seed on the slide below and identify the embryo, endosperm,
seed coat.
Slide: pine mature embryo, ls
(Atlas: 4th fig 6.84; 5th fig 6.123; 6th fig 6.166; 7th fig 6.167)
D. Flowering Plants
Flowering Plant species are the dominant members of the Plant Kingdom in the world today. 90%
of all living plants are in this group. Nearly all crop plants as well as most horticultural plants are
flowering plants. The flowering plants are the last major plant group to appear in the fossil record
and are the most complex and most diverse.
Flowering plants include the most diversified and complex members of the plant kingdom. They
have well developed vascular tissues (xylem and phloem) and produce pollen and seeds like the
conifers and their allies but differ from them in that the ovules are enclosed within an ovary which
later becomes a fruit. Flowering plants have also developed greater diversity in methods of
pollination. In conifers, pollen traveled by wind to the female cone. In flowering plants pollen can
travel to the female structures not only by wind but by water, insects, birds, and mammals.
Like the conifers, asexual spores are not produced by flowering plants (remember that the
sporophytes in the other two major plant groups did produce spores). The main sexual reproductive
organ in flowering plants is the flower.
Most angiosperms are monoecious (hermaphrodites); flowers are a combination of both male and
female reproductive parts. General flower structures include the receptacle, sepals and petals; the
male parts, referred to collectively as the stamen, include the anther and filament; the female
parts, referred to collectively as the pistil, include the stigma, style, and ovary with ovules.
The pollen grains are released from the anther and travel by wind, water or animal to a pistil of
another flower. The pollen lands on the stigma and sends a tube (=pollen tube) down the style into
the ovary. When the pollen tube reaches the ovule the sperm joins with the egg to produce a
zygote. The fertilized egg (=zygote) begins to divide to form the embryo. At the end of this short
spurt of development the embryo along with a small food supply are encased within a tough seed
coat to produce the seed. The embryo is a miniature version of the future plant and contains an
embryonic root, an embryonic stem, and the embryonic leaves.
The fruit is an adaptation of flowering plants that helps to protect the seed while enhancing its
dispersal. While each ovule is developing into a seed, the ovary is maturing into a fruit. The
stigma, style, stamens, sepals, and petals usually wither away and the ovary, containing 1 or more
seeds, enlarges. A fruit may consist of up to three different layers that enclose the seed. There are
many different kinds of fruits depending on the characteristics of the ovary walls from which each
develops. Illustrations of several are provided in your atlas and in the attached pages.
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Some of the slides you will use in this section mention monocots and dicots. These are two major
kinds of flowering plants. Monocots include onions, orchids, lilies, grasses, corn, wheat, etc.
Dicots include all the other kinds of flowering plants such as beans, tomatoes, peppers, roses,
bluebonnets, apples, peaches, roses, pecans etc. You do not need to be able to distinguish between
monocots and dicots on these slides. Both will have the same basic tissues, they are just arranged
differently.
Lab Activities: Flowering Plants (Atlas:
5th fig 6.147-244; 6th fig 6.167, 6,203, 6.218)
1. General Flowering Plant Anatomy: Vegetative Organs
Refresh your memory of the anatomy of roots, stems and leaves by viewing the slides below.
a. Roots:
i. Examine the root model and and identify the root cap, root hairs and the epidermis,
cortex, xylem, phloem
ii. Examine the slide of a root cross sections and identify the internal structures and tissues
of the plant root including epidermis, cortex, xylem, phloem:
Slide: Typical monocot and dicot roots, cs
(Atlas: 4th fig fig 6.93-94; 5th fig 6.151-152, 6.157-158; 6th fig 6.170 & 6.181; 7th fig
6.182)
b. Stems:
i. Look at the stem section model and refresh your memory of the location of the three
tissue types and the additional terms here:
dermal tissue: epidermis, guard cells, stomata
vascular tissue: vascular bundles, xylem, phloem
ground tissue: cortex, pith
Model: stem section
ii. Examine the slides of stem cross sections and identify the internal structures and tissues
including epidermis, vascular bundles (xylem and phloem), ground tissue
Slide: Typical monocot and dicot stems, cs
(Atlas: 4th fig 6.102 & 6.106; 45th fig 6.170 & 6.173; 6th fig 6.189 & 6.192; 7th
fig 6.191&6.194)
c. Leaves:
i. Look at the leaf model and refresh your memory of the location of the three tissue types
and the additional terms here:
dermal tissue: epidermis, guard cells, stomata
vascular tissue: leaf veins, vascular bundles, xylem, phloem
ground tissue: mesophyll
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Model: leaf section
ii. Observe the slide below and be able to recognize: cells of the epidermis,
stomata, guard cells, leaf hairs (trichomes)
Slide: monocot & dicot leaf epidermis wm
(Atlas: 5th fig 6.196; 6th fig 6.216; 7th fig 6.219-20)
iii. Examine the slide of the leaf cross sections below. Identify the internal structures and
tissues including, cuticle, epidermis, ground tissue (=mesophyll), xylem, phloem,
stomata, guard cells. Look closely and find small pores (=stoma) in the epidermis,
especially the lower epidermis. These pores allow for gas exchange. On each side
of the stoma (pleural = stomata) are small guard cells that can open and close the
pore. On this same slide note the leaf hairs (or trichomes).
Slides: Typical monocot and dicot leaves, cs
(Atlas: 4th fig 6.115 & 6.116; 5th fig 6.191; 6th fig 6.211; 7th fig 6.214-4)
2. Modified Vegetative Organs of Flowering Plants
1 pt extra credit: bring in an example of a modified root, stem or leaf on this day of this lab. Check in with the
instructor before the beginning of class.
Part of the reasons for the success of flowering plants in the world today is the adaptability of
their vegetative organs to perform a variety of additional roles. This allows flowering plants to
adapt to a much wider variety of habitats and living conditions than those in the other plant
groups. You will investigate some of these modifications in this lab exercise.
There are several “fresh” and preserved examples of various modified roots, modified stems and
modified leaves available in the lab. In your lab report place the number or name of each item
in the column of the table that best describes which vegetative plant organ has been modified
and list the major function of each. Make sure you include at least one example each of an
organ modified for: support, gas exchange, food gathering, food or water storage,
protection, and asexual reproduction.
a. Modified Roots. Familiarize yourself with the terms used for modified roots by looking
up their definitions in your text or other source. Identify various examples of modified
or specialized roots as available; see illustrations provided. Then note the modifications
of roots in the specimens provided (Atlas: 4th pp84-92; 5th fig 6.149, 6.150, 6.153; 6th 6.168).
These modified organs usually enhance one or more of the organ’s major functions, or
give that organ a completely new function.
Recognize & know functions of : prop roots, pneumatophores, tuberous
roots, aerial roots
b. Modified Stems. Familiarize yourself with the terms used for modified stems by
looking up their definitions in your text or other source. Identify various examples of
modified or specialized stems as available; see illustrations provided. Then note the
modifications of stems in the specimens provided (Atlas: 4th pp84-92; 5th fig 6.164-165; 6th fig
6.183). These modified organs enhance one or more of the organ’s major functions, or
the modification can give that organ a completely new function.
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Recognize & know functions of : tubers, rhizomes, runners, spines, prickles.
vining stems
c. Modified Leaves. Familiarize yourself with the terms used for modified leaves by
looking up their definitions in your text or other source. Identify various examples of
modified or specialized leaves as available; see illustrations provided. Then note the
modifications of leaves in the specimens provided. These modified organs usually
enhance one or more of the organ’s major functions, or give that organ a completely new
function.
Recognize & know functions of : tendrils, bulbs, spines, pitcher plant leaves
3. Flowering Plants: Reproductive Organs
1 pt Extra Credit. Bring in 2 examples of flowers. Check in with the instructor before the beginning of class
a. Flower
i. Examine the flower model to identify the following structures: receptacle, sepals, petals,
stamen, anther, filament, pistil, stigma, style, ovary with ovules.
Model: flower
(Atlas: 4th fig 6.119; 5th fig 6.197 – 6.215; 6th fig 6.217 & 6.251)
ii. Examine the fresh lilies and identify as many of the same structures as you can. Note
that the sepals and petals look very similar
Live: fresh lilies
iii. Remove the pistil from the open flower you dissected above (ii.) and use a scalpel to
make a cross section of the very bottom of the ovary. Make a longitudinal section of
the remainder of the ovary. Use your dissecting scope to note the location of the ovules
with eggs in your two sections. Make a labeled sketch of your sections in the space
provided in your lab report.
iv. touch a small piece of CLEAR scotch tape to the anther and tape it onto a clean slide.
View the slide under low power and draw the pollen grains that you see in the space
provided in your lab report.
v. After studying the flower structure of the Lily, dissect 5 of the other kinds of fresh
flowers available to find the basic flower parts. You may need a dissecting scope for the
smaller flowers. Note the many variations in shape and numbers of the four basic flower
parts; eg sometimes sepals or petals are fused together into a tubelike structure. In some
cases the pistils or stamens are missing completely (=incomplete flowers). Record this
information in the table provided on your lab report.
Live: fresh flowers
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vi. Examine the slide of a lily flower bud cross section and identify the sepals, petals,
anthers and pistil. Also note the ovary with ovules & eggs:
Slide: Lily flower bud cs
(Atlas: 5th fig 6.228; 6th 6.252 & 6.258; 7th fig 6.263)
vii. Take a live lily flower bud that has not yet opened and with a scalpel cut off the top half
inch of the bud. Then peel back and identify, in order, the sepals, petals, stamens and
pistil.
b. Pollen
i. compare the slide below to the illustration in your atlas to be able to recognize what
pollen grains look like
Slide: mixed pollen grains
(Atlas: 4th fig 6.134-5; 5th fig 6.219-23; 6th fig 6.246-50; 7th fig 6.257-61)
ii. View the slide below and note the growing pollen tube as it would appear after it lands
on the stigma of a pistil:
Slide: Lily pollen tubes, wm
(Atlas: 6th fig 6.251; 7th fig 6.261)
c. Seed Development
View the slide below and identify the embryo, endosperm and seed coat
Slides: Shepherd’s Purse Mature embryo, Capsella, ls
(Atlas: 5th fig 6.225-6; 6th 6.262-5; 7th fig 6.275-6)
d. Fruit Development
i. Study the slides of developing fruits of apples and tomatoes. Remember that the fruit is
produced from the ovary of the pistil and encloses the seeds. Compare these slides to
the slide you looked at earlier of the Lily flower bud and try to find the same structures.
Use the illustrations in your atlas, and others attached to locate the seed in each kind of
fruit.
Slides: Tomato Fruit Lycopersicum cs
Apple Fruit Malus cs
(Atlas: 4th beginning on p97; 5th fig 6.218; 6th 6.243-5; 7th fig 6.277)
ii. Other fruits: study the variety of fresh and dried fruits and illustrations of fruits and try
to determine the relationship between the structures of the fruit with the structures of the
flower that produced it using the illustrations provided. Select four different fruits, use
the knife provided to make a section down the fruit beginning at its “stalk”. Then make
a simple sketch of each in the appropriate boxes on the lab report. Then indicate where,
on each, the parts of the flower (sepals, petals, pistil (stigma, style, ovary), stamen) are,
or once were, before it became a fruit.
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Living & Preserved: examples of fresh fruits
(Atlas: 5th fig 6.232-44; 6th fig 6.266-78; 7th fig 6.277-90)
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V. Plant Symbioses
A. Root Nodules
Some roots have a symbiotic relationship with nitrogen fixing bacteria. The bacteria creates a
swelling on root called root nodules. Each nodule contains millions of bacteria. The bacteria
convert nitrogen gas into useable nitrogen ‘fertilizer’ for the plant. Only bacteria are able to use the
abundant nitrogen gas in the atmosphere as a nutrient in this way. Plants with root nodules are
freed from a strong dependence on nitrogen fertilizers and tend to grow in poor soil where other
plants are unable to thrive. Review the slide and preserved material below related to this symbiotic
association.
Slide: Legume Nodule cs
(see handout)
Preserved: note root nodules on the bluebonnet plant on display in the lab
B. Mycorrhizae
Mycorrhizae are a symbiotic association between fungi and plant roots. The fungal hyphae grow
within and on the surface of the root and root hairs and increase the surface area of the root thus
making the plant more efficient at absorbing water and minerals from the soil. In return, the plant
supplies the fungus with sugar which it uses for energy. Almost all seed plants have fungi
associated with their roots. Most of the mushrooms and toadstools that appear after rain are the
fruiting bodies of these fungi. Plants grown in the absence of these fungi appear smaller and less
healthy. Review the slide below to distinguish between the plant cells and fungal cells in this
symbiosis.
Slide: endotrophic mycorrhizae, cs
(see handout)
C. Plant Galls
Plant Galls are any deviation from the normal pattern of plant growth on a particular organ or part
due to the presence of another organism. Many galls superficially resemble plant parts such as
berries, nuts and other types of fruit. Some galls look like fungi and for years some were even
misidentified as fungal species. Other galls resemble strange animal forms like sea urchins and
coral polyps. Plant galls can be produced by a variety of organisms; viruses, bacteria, fungi,
protozoa, mites, insects and nematodes. A gall appears to be a parasitic relationship. Most galls
are a physiological response or defensive reaction by plants to certain insects that feed or deposit
eggs on or within plant tissues.Virtually all plant organs are attacked: roots, stems, leaves, flowers
and fruits, but leaves are the most common organ attacked.
Living and Preserved: plant galls & illustrations
(see handout)
D. Parasitic Plants
A few plants are parasitic on other plants or on soil fungi. Some plants, such as mistletoe still have
green leaves that do photosynthesis but their roots are able to also absorb sugars and other organic
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molecues from their hosts. Some plants have completely lost the ability to do photosynthesis and
are heterotrophic, feeding completely on the organic foods produced by their hosts.
VI. Other Plant Interactions
A. Root Grafts
As perennial plant roots grow they encounter roots of other plants growing nearby. The roots of
these different plants may grow together to such a point that the vascular tissues of both are
interconnected. Root grafts can occur between members of the same species and sometimes even
between two different species. Such root grafts have been found in over 160 species of trees and
shrubs. Nutrients and water are shared enhancing the survival of individuals that cannot absorb
adequate amounts of nutrients and water from their own roots. But pathogens can also more easily
spread from tree to tree.
Preserved: root graft & illustrations
B. Insectivorous Plants
100’s of plants are carnivorous. They generally grow in nitrogen poor soil and use insects as a
source of nitrogen.
C. Plant Movements
While plants are nonmotile, many of them can move in some way; from leaves or flowers bending
toward light, petals opening and closing during the day or night, insectivorous plants that can
capture a fly by closing their leaves, etc.
Lab Activities:
2 pts Extra Credit: Bring in an example of any of the kinds of plant symbioses mentioned above for the appropriate lab
period. Check in with the instructor before the beginning of class
1. Look at the examples of plant symbioses & interactions on display (illustrations, slides, preserved
and live materials) and be able to recognize each example of sympiosis and to describe the nature
of the relationship.
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Name:______________________
Date:____________
The Plant Kingdom
Lab Report
I. The Anatomy of Plants
1. Draw and label a typical plant cell as seen in the Elodea wet mount and the plant cell model.
2. List each of the major plant cell organelles & structures mentioned in the lab and that you found
on the plant cell model, and in a phrase describe the general function of each.
3. Name three structures that you actually saw on your wet mount. Name two structures that you found
in the plant cell model but could NOT find in real plant cells.
4. Name the major vegetative plant organs and list the specific function of each.
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5. Select one plant organ and sketch a section from one of the slides you used and label each of the
three major kinds of plant tissues within that organ; show both kinds of vascular tissue
6. What are leaf hairs, stomata, and root hairs. What is the function of each, and in what tissue is
each found
7. Name & describe the difference in structure and in function between xylem and phloem.
8. After looking at all 4 major plant groups; how much overall variation (size, shape functions, etc) did
you find in each type of vegetative organ; for example are there more different kinds of leaves than
roots or stems in the 4 main kinds of plants? Explain
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II. Plant Life Cycle
9. Define sporophyte & gametophyte. What would be the advantage to having these two separate
stages in the life cycles of mosses and ferns?
IV. Plant Diversity
10. Sketch a moss sporophyte and a moss gametophyte from the sample slides that you viewed.
Which stage are you most likely to find hiking in the woods? Why?
11. Sketch a fern sporophyte and a fern gametophyte from the slides that you viewed. Which stage
are you most likely to find hiking in the woods? Why?
12. Looking at the examples of ferns on the counter, are the leaves of most ferns simple or
compound?
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13. Sketch the vascular bundle of a fern, a conifer and a flowering plant from the slides you viewed in
lab and label the xylem and phloem of each:
Fern vascular tissue
Conifer vascular tissue
Flowering plant vascular tissue
14. Draw what you see on your slide of cork tissue. Robert Hooke was the first to illustrate cork tissue
in 1665. What was the significance of his description of cork?
cork
15. Name the tissues found in wood and the tissues found in bark of perennial plants.
16. How can you tell the difference between a male cone and a female cone in conifers?
17. The first three plant groups; mosses, ferns and conifers, actually each consist of several related but
distinct plant phyla (see lecture notes and handouts).
a. Name a plant that we included with mosses but technically is not a moss and describe one
way in which it differs from true mosses
b. Name a plant that we included with ferns but technically is not a fern and describe one way
in which it differs from true ferns
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c. Name a plant that we included with conifers but technically is not a conifer and describe one
way in which it differs from true conifers
18. On the table below name the item that represents a modified vegetative organ, check the correct
column to indicate which organ it is, then indicate its major function.
Item or #
Modified
Roots
Modified
Stems
eg onion bulb
Modified
Leaves
its New or Enhanced
Function
x
food storage
19. Record your drawings of the lily flowers below.
ovary cross section
ovary longitudinal section
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20. For the 5 flowers that you dissect indicate how many of each flower part you found in
each different kind of flowers
Flower
Sepals
Petals
Pistil
Stamen
3
3
1
6
eg. Lily
21. Record your labeled drawings of four different kinds of fruits in the boxes below:
22. What were the similarities and the differences that you saw in lab between the conifer embryo and
the flowering plant embryo that you looked at in the lab?
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23. Using lecture material, your textbook, or other reference sources, Name a specific example of a
food or other commercial product made from each of the following specific plant parts:
Vegetative Plant Organs
Roots
fibrous root
tap root
whole stem
Stems
bark
sap
axillary buds
whole leaf
Leaves
blade only
trichomes
24. Using lecture material, your textbook, or other reference sources, name a specific example of a
food or other commercial product that is made from the specific reproductive structures below:
Reproductive Plant Organs
whole flower
Flower
petals
pistils
Fruit
whole fruit
seeds only
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V. Plant Symbioses
25. List each of the symbioses displayed in the lab. Label each as mutualistic, commensal or
parasitic and explain why.
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The Animal Kingdom
Biol 1409 Lab Exercises
The Last and by far the largest kingdom in terms of the number of different kinds of species is the
Animal Kingdom (Metazoa). Animals are represented by a very diverse array of sizes, shapes and
forms from very simple to extremely complex, including the “human animal”. All animals are
multicellular heterotrophs. Most animals have cells differentiated into tissues, organs and organ
systems. Whereas plants had tissue and relatively simple vegetative and reproductive organs, animals
have complex tissues forming elaborate organ systems. The greater specialization of cells and tissues
increases the efficiency by which animals can carry out life’s basic processes and allows for almost
limitless opportunities for evolutionary variations and adaptations to numerous kinds of habitats and
environmental conditions.
Members of the Animal Kingdom are distinguished by sharing the following major characteristics:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
multicellular, eukaryotic organisms
cells with no cell wall or chloroplasts and many more mitochondria, many more ribosomes
heterotrophic nutrition (herbivores, carnivores, saprobes)
aerobic respiration: require free oxygen for energy production
extra energy usually stored as fats & oils
cells differentiated into tissues: epithelial, connective, muscular, nervous
tissues differentiated into complex organs and organ systems.
most are motile at some point in their life cycle
most are much more active and have a much higher metabolism than members of any
other kingdom
10. reproduce both sexually and asexually, animals show a great diversity in kinds of
reproduction. some with well developed alternation of generations.
11. most have a relatively complex developmental stages including an
embryonic or a larval stage as they progress from zygote to adult
12. most have fairly elaborate behaviors to enhance their survival within their habitat
There are more animal phyla than those in any other kingdom and new ones are still being described.
There are about 34 distinct phyla within the animal kingdom, many of these phyla contain only one or a
few species, yet differ enough from other animals that they are given their own distinct “category”.
A simple way to categorize animals is as invertebrates (= animals without backbones) and vertebrates
(=animals with backbones). The vertebrates are all members of the phylum Chordata and are the most
familiar animals to most people. This is also the phylum to which we belong. But notice that, by far,
most animal species are invertebrates while the vertebrates are found in only a single phylum of
animal.
I. The Anatomy of Animals
A. Animal Cells:
Animal cells share the same basic features as other eukaryotic cell. What distinguishes them from
plants is their lack of a cell wall and lack of chloroplasts. Also, since animals are much more
active, animal cells have many more mitochondria (the energy factories). Finally, animal cells are
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also much higher in protein and therefore have many more ribosomes (protein factories) than the
cells of any of the other kingdoms that we have studied
Lab Activities:
A. Animal Cells:
1. Study the illustrations and find the following organelles on the
animal cell model: cell membrane, nucleus, ribosomes, mitochondria. Compare and contrast
the structure and organelles of plant cells and animal cells. Are there any organelles that
animals have but are lacking in plants?
Model: animal cell
(Atlas: 4th fig 1.16-1.56; 5th fig 1.18; 6th fig 1.18; 7th fig 1.18)
B. Animal Tissues:
The basis of animal diversity is the kinds of tissues found in the animal kingdom. there are four
basic tissue types of the adult animals: epithelial, connective, muscular and nervous tissues. The
four adult tissues are further differentiated into various subtypes.
1. Epithelial Tissues –form the outer coverings of animals. It also lines the inner and outer
surfaces of all body organs. It functions in : protection, secretion, absorption, filtration;
secrete cuticles, exoskeletons, shells, etc.
2. Connective Tissues – are a very diverse group which includes tissues used for support like
bone and cartilage, tissues used for storage like adipose tissue, as a kind of glue to hold
things together like areolar tissue, or to transport nutrients, oxygen, wastes and
hormones
throughout the body like blood.
3. Muscle Tissues – are elongated, spindle shaped cells used for movement both internal and
external, both voluntary and involuntary such as swimming or running, and internal
movements of various organs such as the pumping heart, and peristalsis of the digestive
organs.
4. Nervous Tissues – are used to conduct information throughout the body, to sense internal
and external environmental changes, and or coordination and control of muscles and glands.
Nerve cells have a central ‘cell body’ and long processes to conduct impulses (transmit
information)
Lab Activities:
B. Animal Tissues:
1. Epithelial Tissues
Slide: epithelium simple squamous (oral smear)
(Atlas: 6th fig 1.29; see handout)
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2. Connective Tissues Be able to distinguish between the four different examples of
connective tissues below:
a. Areolar Connective Tissue
- "glue" to hold other tissues together; numerous fibers and cells criss-crossing the
tissue
Slide: mammal areolar tissue spread
(Atlas: 4th fig. 1.42; 5th fig 1.44; 6th fig 1.44; 7th fig 1.44)
b. Adipose Connective Tissue
– large ‘empty’ looking cells for fat storage
Slide: adipose tissue sec [Wards]
(Atlas: 4th fig. 1.41; 5th fig 1.43; 6th fig 1.43; 7th fig 1.43)
c. Bone Connective Tissue
– rigid ‘bulls-eye’ shaped Haversian canal system for rigid support
Slide: bone dry ground cs
(Atlas: 4th fig 1.50; 5th fig 1.52; 6th fig 1.52; 7th fig 1.52)
d. Blood (or vascular) Connective Tissue
- transport of nutrients, wastes, oxygen, hormones, etc
Slides: blood frog or frog blood smear
3. Muscle Tissues
slide: amphibian smooth muscle teased
4. Nervous Tissues
Slide: mammal neuron motor nerve cell sm
(Atlas: 4th fig 1.33; 5th fig 1.65; 6th fig 165; 7th fig 1.65)
C. Animal Organs and Organ Systems
The animal kingdom contains the most diverse array of organs of any kingdom of life. Whereas
plants capitalized on their basic tissue types to create tissues that extend continuously throughout
relatively simple plant organs; animals instead developed a great variety of discrete organs and
organ systems to perform life functions. Each organ consists of several discrete tissue types but
they do not share the “interconnectedness” seen between the various plant organs. While all
animals must perform similar functions, each phylum has developed different sets of organs to
handle them. The description of the major animal organ systems below focus on vertebrates,
particularly humans, as an introduction to the major kinds of animal organ systems.
1. The Skeletal System
General Functions of the Skeletal System
1. Support (particularly on land)
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2. Movement (along with muscular system)
3. Protection of certain vital organs (eg. brain, heart, reproductive organs, etc)
4. Mineral storage (eg. calcium & phosphorus)
The skeletal system serves several important functions the most obvious of which are
structural support and protection of vital organs. The skeleton also serves as a reservoir for
important minerals such as calcium and phosphorus.
Skull
Axial
Skeleton
Backbone (Vertebrae)
Ribcage
Skeleton
Arms (shoulder & collarbone,
upper arm, lower arm, hand)
Appendicular
Skeleton
Legs (pelvis, upper leg, lower leg, foot)
Lab Activities:
C. Animal Organs and Organ Systems: 1. Skeletal system
a. Look at the skeletons available and be able to distinguish between the axial and
appendicular skeletons
Model: human skeleton
(Atlas: 5th fig 9.10-11; 6th fig 9.10-11; 7th fig 9.10-1)
b. Identify the other subdivisions of the human skeleton as described in the introductory
material above
2. The Muscular System
General Functions of the Muscular System:
1. movement
2. Posture & Stability
3. Communication (taking, body language, etc)
4. Control of Body Temperature (in warm blooded animals)
Movement is one of the most distinctive characteristics of animals. Most animals move at
least sometime in their life cycle. Movement is usually based on some kind of muscle
tissue, often working against bones and joints. In humans there are over 600 different
muscles that are attached by tendons to bones across a moveable joint. Most voluntary
movements require the coordination of several muscles at the same time.
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Lab Activities:
C. Animal Organs and Organ Systems: 2. The Muscular System
a. Observe the models of human muscles, find the ‘lats’(=latissimus dorsi),
‘pecs’(=pectoralis major & minor), ‘biceps’(=biceps brachii), ‘triceps’(=triceps
brachii), ‘quads’(=quadriceps femoris (=rectus femoris and others)), ‘glutes’(=gluteus
maximus), ‘sixpac’(=rectus abdominis)
Models: human muscular system
(Atlas: 5th fig 9.28-29; 6th fig 9.28-29; 7th fig 9.28)
b. Also be able to describe the general movement produced by each of these muscles
3. The Endocrine System
General Functions of the Endocrine:
1. Coordination and control of long term activities such as growth, metabolism,
reproduction & development
Generally the hormones of the endocrine system regulate long term or cycling processes of
growth and development while the nervous system coordinates activities that require
immediate responses to environmental conditions. Three of the major endocrine glands of
vertebrates are:
pituitary gland
à master gland of body; helps coordinate function of other endocrine
glands
thyroid gland
à regulates overall rate of metabolism or chemical processing by
body cells. Some OTC “diet pills” contain extracts from animal
thyroid glands to boost metabolism
pancreas
à helps to maintain a constant level of sugar in the blood. Sugar is
the main energy food that cells need to carry out their work.
Diabetes is a malfunction of this gland causing blood sugar levels
to drastically increase and resulting in many physiological
malfunctions
Lab Activities:
C. Animal Organs and Organ Systems: 3. The Endocrine System
a. Locate and identify three of the major human endocrine glands listed below
pituitary gland
thyroid gland
pancreas
à master gland of body; helps coordinate function of other endocrine glands
à regulates overall rate of metabolism or chemical processing by body cells. Some
OTC “diet pills” contain extracts from animal thyroid glands to boost
metabolism
à helps to maintain a constant level of sugar in the blood. Sugar is the main
energy food that cells need to carry out their work. Diabetes is a malfunction of
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this gland causing blood sugar levels to drastically increase and resulting in
many physiological malfunctions
Model: human torso
(Atlas: 5th fig 9.40 & 9.42; 6th fig 9.57 & 9.49; 7th fig 9.57)
4. The Nervous System
General Functions of the Nervous System:
1. Coordination and control of all body activities
2. Rapid responses to emergency situations
3. Perception & interpretation of sensory information
4. (in humans) Higher level thought processes; planning, abstract thought, memory,
learning, speech
Animals are more physically active than members of any other kingdom and therefore
require a significantly greater degree of coordination and control for their complex systems.
In addition to hormones, which are also found in the other (less active) kingdoms, most
animals have some form of nervous system.
In humans, the nervous system is subdivided into a Central Nervous System (the brain and
the spinal cord) and the Peripheral Nervous System (the nerves branching from the brain
and spinal cord). Nerve cells of the PNS that are bringing information to the brain are called
sensory neurons. Nerve cells that are taking information away from the brain out to muscles
and glands are called motor nerves.
Lab Activities:
C. Animal Organs and Organ Systems: 4. The Nervous System
a. Observe the display of the cat nervous system and Identify the CNS & PNS. Observe
how the spinal cord connects to both the brainstem and the main nerves of the body to
coordinate impulses going to and coming from the brain.
Preserved: cat nervous system
b. Find the following general regions on the model human brain;
Brain Stem
Cerebellum
Cerebrum
à controls vital life functions such as heartbeat, breathing, consciousness
à helps coordinate and control voluntary muscle movements and posture
à gives us conscious perception of our major senses; abstract thinking and
planning; language and speech; learning & memory
Models: human brain
Preserved: human brain
(Atlas: 5th fig 9.55&58; 6th fig 9.47-9; 7th fig 9.47-9)
5. The Senses
General Functions of the Senses:
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1. monitor the outside world and the internal environment to allow the body to respond
quickly and effectively to any potential dangers or threats
Animals must be able to monitor both their internal and external environments and to react
and respond to the information that they collect. A diverse array of sensory organs has
evolved in the animal kingdom ranging from simple cells to elaborate sensory organs. The
Central Nervous Systems of animals process and use only one kind of information,
electrochemical impulses, to coordinate and control all body systems. Each sensory cell is
essentially a transducer and must be capable of converting a specific kind of input into an
electrochemical impulse. Sense organs can be classified according to nature of the sensory
information that they process:
photoreceptors
chemoreceptors
mechanoreceptors
thermoreceptors
à convert light energy into nerve impulses
à convert various chemicals in air or water into nerve impulses
à convert mechanical movements such as vibrations of air or
water, pressure, and touch to nerve impulses
à converts heat or cold into nerve imulses
Lab Activities:
C. Animal Organs and Organ Systems: 5. The Sense Organs
a. Name and describe the main functions of the major human sense organs: eye, ear, nose,
taste buds
Models:
human torso
ear (Atlas: 7th fig 9.65)
eye (Atlas: 5th fig 9.55 & 9.58; 6th fig 9.62 & 9.65; 7th fig 9.62)
b. Identify which type of the receptors mentioned in the introduction to this section that you
would expect to be found in each of the sense organs for vision, smell, taste, touch,
hearing, and orientation
6. The Circulatory System
General Functions:
1. Delivers food and oxygen to cells
2. Removes carbon dioxide and wastes from cells
3. transports hormones to target cells
4. protects body from pathogens
Multicellular organisms must be able to get nutrients and oxygen to individual cells and get
rid of wastes and carbon dioxide. In small animals simple diffusion can easily move things
from place to place. Larger animals require some kind of circulatory system to do this.
The circulatory system consists of a muscular pump, the heart, and plumbing, arteries,
capillaries and veins. In simple animals the heart is a simple pumping vessel, in birds and
mammals the heart is a double pump with two distinct circuits of blood flow; the
pulmonary circuit and the systemic circuit. The heart first pumps blood to the lungs or
gills to pick up oxygen and release carbon dioxide. The oxygenated blood then returns to
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the heart and is pumped into the systemic circuit which branches to every other organ in
the body to deliver oxygen and nutrients. The capillaries are the microscopic vessels that
are the actual sites of exchange of materials. Capillaries are found in virtually all organs of
the body and are never more than a millimeter away from any body cell.
Lab Activities:
C. Animal Organs and Organ Systems: 6. The Circulatory System
a. Study the preserved cow heart and human heart models and note the following:
i. the 4 pumping chambers; 2 atria and 2 ventricles
ii. the 1-way valves that insure blood can circulate only in 1 direction
iii. and the 4 major blood vessels attached to the heart
iv. veins bringing blood back to the atria
v. arteries taking blood away from the ventricles
Preserved: cow heart
(Atlas: 5th fig 9.66; 6th fig 9.73; 7th fig 9.73)
Models: human heart
(Atlas: 5th fig 9.66; 6th fig 9.73; 7th fig 9.67-8)
b. In illustrations and using the circulatory system plaque, follow the pulmonary circuit
from the ventricle of the heart through arteries to the lungs and back to the atria of the
heart through veins. Also, Follow the systemic circuit from the ventricle of the heart
through arteries to all other parts of the body, then back to the atria of the heart through
veins.
Model & Illustrations: human circulatory system
(Atlas: 5th 9.60-1; 6th fig 9.67-8; 7th fig 9.67-8)
7. The Digestive System
General Functions:
1. physical and chemical digestion of large organic milecules into their smaller building
blocks
2. absorption of water and digested nutrients
3. collection & elimination undigested and unabsorbed materials
The digestive system is essentially a long hollow tube which has been modified along its
length to form organs responsible for processing and absorbing food. In addition, several
accessory organs such as the liver, gall bladder and the pancreas are associated with the
alimentary canal.
Lab Activities:
C. Animal Organs and Organ Systems: 7. The Digestive System
Locate the main digestive organs on the models available: mouth, throat, esophagus,
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stomach, small intestine, large intestine, anus, liver, pancreas. Which of these organs
are most important in the actual digestion of food? Which of these organs are most
important in absorption of nutrients into the blood?
Model: human torso
(Atlas: 5th fig 9.75; 6th fig 9.82; 7th fig 9.82)
8. The Respiratory System
General Functions:
1. O2 and CO2 exchange between blood and air
2. speech and vocalization
3. sense of smell
Virtually all animals require free oxygen gas (O2) for respiration. And since animals are
considerably more active than members of other kingdoms they require a greater supply of
oxygen to generate energy.
The respiratory system is a collection of continuously branching tubes, held open by bands
of cartilage that allows air to move into and out of the lungs.
nose à throat à voice box (larynx)à
trachea à bronchial tree à alveoli (in lungs)
Inside the lungs the open tubes terminate at clusters of sacs called alveoli. These are the
actual sites of gas exchange. they are surrounded by capillaries. and together provide a
considerable surface are for gas exchange.
Also, just below the throat is an enlarged area called the larynx, or voice box. By forcing
air over a thin sheet of muscles and adjusting the tension of the muscles we can produce
various sounds including those related to emotions, crying, laughing, and speech.
Lab Activities:
C. Animal Organs and Organ Systems: 8. The Respiratory System
Locate the nose, throat, voice box, trachea, and bronchial tree on the torso model
Model: human torso & respiratory system
(Atlas: 7th fig 9.74)
9. The Excretory System
General Functions:
1. removal of metabolic wastes & toxins
2. elimination of excess nutrients & excess hormones
3. regulation of blood volume & pressure
4. regulation of electrolytes & body pH
Biol 1409:
Animals require some means to discard unwanted metabolic wastes. In small, simple
animals this is usually done through the body wall with no specific excretory organs or
structures. Metabolic wastes are removed by simple diffusion from individual cells. In the
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more complex animals some sort of processing system is required to collect and rid the body
of metabolic wastes such as various minerals and salts, excess water and nitrogen wastes.
The excretory system usually works closely with the circulatory system t collect and rid the
body of its wastes.
The metabolic wastes that our cells produce diffuse into the blood and are taken to the
kidneys for disposal. The basic strategy is that wastes and other materials present in excess
quantities must be removed from the blood. Kidneys selectively regulate concentrations of
dissolved wastes and other substances in the blood. This regulation process is accomplished
by filtering the dissolved substances out of the blood. Later, certain constituents are
selectively reabsorbed back into the blood. the final filtrate, urine, passes out of the
organism through ducts and an organ called the urinary bladder which temporarily stores the
urine.
Kidneys
ureters
bladder
urethra
Filtering the blood and urine formation occurs in the kidneys. Each kidney is a collection of
1000‘s of tiny neprhons. Each nephron processes a small amount of blood to extract
metabolic wastes and excess nutrients from the blood and sends it to the bladder for storage
and later elimination.
Lab Activities:
C. Animal Organs and Organ Systems: 9. The Excretory System
Identify the kidneys, ureters, bladder and urethra on the models below
Models:
human torso
excretory system
(Atlas: 5th fig 9.67; 6th fig 9.74; 7th fig 9.97)
10. The Reproductive System
General Function:
1. producing offspring
2. propagation of the species
Most animals reproduce both asexually and sexually. Humans and other mammals are
somewhat unusual in that they only produce offspring by sexual reproduction. The main
human reproductive organs are described in the table below.
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Male
Reproductive Organs
organ
general function
produce sperm and
Testes
sex hormones
direct semen to female
Internal
reproductive system
conducting
Female
organ
ovaries
Reproductive Organs
general function
produce eggs and sex
hormones
fertilization of the egg
oviduct
passageways
Glands
urethra
in penis
produce semen to
protect and nurture
sperm cells
internal fertilization
Development of child
uterus
vagina
internal fertilization
Lab Activities:
C. Animal Organs and Organ Systems: 10. The Reproductive System
Identify the main reproductive organs on the models available; know the functions of each:
male: penis, testes, glands, urethra;
female: ovaries, oviducts, uterus, vagina
Models:
human torso
male reproductive system
female reproductive system
(Atlas: 5th fig 9.90-1; 6th fig 9.97-8; 7th fig 9.101-2)
Human Organ Systems Overview
Skeletal System
the skeleton is subdivided into Axial and Appendicular portions. each individual bone is a separate
organ of the skeletal system (eg. humerus, radius, femur, etc. )
Muscular System
each individual muscle is a separate organ of the muscular system
(eg. biceps, triceps, gastrocnemius. etc.)
Nervous System
Central Nervous System vs Peripheral Nervous System, brain, cerebrum, cerebellum,
brainstem, spinal cord, cranial nerves, spinal nerves
Sense Organs
eyes, ears, taste buds, smell, touch, balance organs
Endocrine System
pituitary gland, thyroid gland, pancreas
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Circulatory System
heart, arteries, capillaries, veins
Respiratory System
nose, throat , voice box (=larynx), trachea, bronchi, lungs, diaphragm
Digestive System
mouth, throat , esophagus, stomach, small intestine, large intestine, liver, gall bladder,
pancreas
Urinary System
kidneys, ureter, urinary bladder, urethra
Reproductive System
male:
female:
penis, testes, glands
ovaries, oviducts, uterus, vagina
II. Animal Reproduction, Development & Life Cycles
Just as there is a diversity of organs and organ systems in animals so there is also a diversity in kinds of
reproduction and life cycles.
A. Animal Reproduction
Most animals reproduce both sexually and asexually. Asexual reproduction produces genetically
identical copies (ie. clones) while sexual reproduction produces genetically unique offspring.
There are advantages and disadvantages to both types of reproduction that will be discussed in
lecture. Even in animals which rely mainly on sexual reproduction for procreation (such as
Vertebrates), asexual reproduction appears in the form of wound healing, tissue repair and
replacement, or as more complex processes such as budding and regeneration.
In animals, sexual reproduction includes:
1. the development and maturation of the gametes; the egg and sperm
2. fertilization to produce the zygote or fertilized egg
3. embryonic development from single celled to multicellular form
4. and one or more post embryonic stages such as larvae, nymphs, fetuses, etc
Lab Activities:
1. Review the exercise we did earlier in the course on the kinds of asexual and sexual
reproduction. Be able to define the following types of reproduction that are common in the
animal kingdom.
Asexual Reproduction in Animals
1. Fission
2. Budding
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Sexual Reproduction in Animals
1. Monoecious Animals (=Hermaphrodites)
2. Dioecious Animals
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3. Regeneration
4. Fragmentation
5. Polyembryony (twinning):
a. Protandry
b. Sexual Dimorphism
c. Parthenogenesis (Virgin Birth)
B. Embryonic Development
After fertilization, the zygote typically goes through various developmental (or immature) stages as
the life cycle progresses from the zygote to adult.
1. Fertilization & Early Cleavage Divisions. At fertilization only a single sperm penetrates and
adds its chromosomes to those in the egg. The fertilized egg then has a pair of each
chromosomes, one from the male parent and the other from the female parent The first
identifiable period of development after the egg is fertilized are called cleavage divisions.
2. Embryonic Development. Embryos are immature stages of animals that are not able to feed
and move independently.
a. Blastula: If the embryo is spherical it is called a blastula; At the blastula stage, the cells
form a hollow sphere..
b. Gastrula: In the gastrula, a depression forms at one end of the
embryo, cells move in to form a saclike pouch. The embryo is now essentially two
layered. The new cavity formed will eventually develop into the digestive system. The
opening of this cavity to the outside will become the mouth or the anus of the adult
animal.
Lab Activities:
1. Fertilization & Early Cleavage Divisions. identify fertilized eggs and eggs undergoing
cleavage divisions in the slide below:
Slide:
starfish early cleavage, Asterias eggs
(Atlas: 5th fig 2.13; 6th fig 2.13; 7th fig 2.13)
2. Embryonic Development. Identify the blastula and the gastrula of starfish embryology as
illustrated in the lab manual and as seen on the following slides.
Slide: starfish blastula; starfish development
(Atlas: 5th fig 2.13; 6th fig 2.13; 7th fig 2.13)
Slide: starfish gastrula, starfish development
(Atlas: 5th fig 2.13; 6th fig 2.13; 7th fig 2.13)
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C. Later Developmental Stages.
Further development varies considerably in different animal groups. Various additional
developmental stages may occur before maturity is reached. Such terms as larva, pupa, fetus,
nymph, etc are used to describe some of these immature stages. Sometimes, the immature stage
even survives longer than does the adult; some mayfly nymphs take a year to develop while the
adult lives for only an hour or two. In some organisms, the number and duration of the immature
stages may even vary from one population of the same species to another and depends on various
environmental cues.
1. Larva: In some animals, especially marine animals, the embryo soon becomes a free living
larva. While each phylum and sometimes each class usually has its own characteristic
larvae, there are a few larval forms that are found in more than one phylum. Similar larvae
imply similar ancestry; indicating that the phyla are relatively closely related.
2. Pupa: A transformational stage in some insects between the larval and adult stage during
which metamorphosis occurs in which the larvae acquire their adult characteristics
3. Fetus: In addition to embryonic development, vertebrates (higher animals) produce an
immature stage that does resemble the adult but that is completely dependent on the mother
for nutrition and protection.
4. Nymphs: Nymphs are immature stages of animals that at least somewhat resemble the adult
of he species and that live and feed independently
Lab Activities:
1. Review the exercise we did earlier in the course on the developmental stages. Be able to
define the following stages that are common in the animal kingdom.
2. Take a closer look at some of the specific kinds of animal larvae and be able to distinguish
between them. The larvae listed below are evolutionarily significant. You do not need to
know to which group each belongs:
a. Planula. A simple multicellular, oval larva with no discernable organs its surface is
covered with cilia
b. Trochophore. A top-shaped larva with a digestive tract beginning at the mouth and
terminating in an anus. Tufts of cilia are found at each end and bands of cilia surround
the wider central area of the larva. Unfortunately, the trochophore slides we have are
not the best and very few of the larvae on the slide are oriented properly to show the
above characteristics.
c. Nauplius. A triangular larva with three pairs of jointed appendages, eyespots, and
digestive organs.
Slides: Aurelia planula, wm
(Atlas: 5th fig 7.23; 6th fig 7.23; 7th fig 7.27)
Patella trochophore larvae, wm
Nauplius, barnacle, wm
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D. Animal Life Cycles
The sequence of discrete, recognizable stages that animals pass through as they develop from a
zygote (the fertilized egg) to the adults’production of sexual gametes (usually the egg and sperm)
are referred to as its life cycle. All living organisms exhibit some form of life cycle. Animals
typically show more variations in their developmental processes than those seen in the other
kingdoms. Members of the animal kingdom have the most diverse life cycles of any living
organisms. Like plants, some animals exhibit an alternation of asexual and sexual generations in
which the animal exists in one form to reproduce asexually, and in another form to reproduce
sexually. Even without a complete change in form, many animals reproduce asexually at one time
of the year or under a certain set of conditions and sexually at other times of the year or under a
different set of conditions. They produce a complex lifecycle where asexual and sexual types of
reproduction alternate.
One good example of such alternation of generations is seen in jellyfish life cycles. The large,
familiar, planktonic jellyfishes are the sexually reproducing forms referred to as medusae. A much
smaller, nonmotile polyp form that reproduces asexually, but is rarely seen. The typical life cycle
of these beasts is illustrated below.
Jellyfish medusa
[motile,planktonic]
sexual reproduction
egg
sperm
medusa buds ………………………………………
zygote
asexual reproduction
larva
Polyp stage
[benthic, sessile]
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Name:________________________
III. Identifying Common Freshwater Invertebrates
Lab Activity:
2 pts Extra Credit: bring in a water sample that contains visible aquatic organisms. Notify your instructor before the
beginning of class.
1. Examine the water samples available in the lab room.
a. collect a drop of water or sediment from the bottom of the container and make a wet mount
to examine on your compound microscope
b. Also, carefully examine any small stones, leaves etc for signs of larger organisms. Then use
forceps to pick them up and place them in the small dish provided. Now use the dissecting
scope or magnifying glass to investigate these larger critters
c. If a speciman is moving too quickly place a drop of ‘Detain’ on your wet mount.
2. Now use the key provided to identify 5 different organisms that you collected. You will usually be
trying to identify the animal to Phylum or Class (review the categories used by taxonomists to
categorize living organisms) Use the same technique that you used to identify the leaf
specimens several weeks ago and follow the dichotomous key as far as you can go. Then
complete the table below. Generally, the common name is given in parentheses and the formal
name is in bold face.
Animal
Sample
Sequence used to identify
it
Common Name
1aà2bà3aà4b
water mites
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
Formal Name of
Animal Group
Order Acari
(a kind of arthropod)
106
Identification of Some Common Freshwater Invertebrates
1a. Animal with obvious jointed legs or antennae (Phylum Arthropoda)
b. Animal without obvious jointed legs (may have stubby unjointed “legs”)
2a. With 3 pairs of legs
b. Clearly with more than 3 pairs of legs
3a. With 4 pairs of legs, no antennae; Class Arachnida
(spiders, mites)
b. Usually with 5 or more pairs of legs and 2 pairs of
antennae
22
5
Class Insecta (adults and nymphs)
3
4
25
4a. Body divided into 2 distinct sections
b. Body not obviously divided into 2 distinct sections
Order Aranea (spiders)
Order Acari (mites)
5a. Microscopic, with segmented body with 4 pairs of
knoblike legs bearing claws at their tips
b. Not as above
Phylum Tardigrada (water bears)
6
6a. Body covered by a shell
b. Body without a shell
7a. Body covered by 1 shell, usually coiled or spiral
b. Body covered by 2 distinct, hinged shells
8a. Individuals growing in colonies or spongelike masses
growing on rocks and twigs
b, Individuals not growing in colonies
9a. Colonies with pores, often green, irregular shapes
b. Not as above; individuals of colony distinct, flowerlike
with numerous tentacles; or gelatinous mass; some
can be quite large
7
8
Class Gastropoda (snails)
20
9
10
Phylum Porifera (sponges)
Phylum Bryozoa (moss animals)
10a. Body soft, umbrella-like and translucent, free swimming
by rhythmic contractions; Phylum Cnidaria;
Class Hydrozoa (jellyfish)
b. Not a jellyfish
11
11a. Most of body with distinct segments
b. Body not segmented
12
16
12a. With distinct head with eyes, antennae and jaws;
legs present or absent; Phylum Arthropoda;
b. Without a distinct head
Class Insecta (insect larvae)
13
13a. Body often flattened, with a sucker at one end
Phylum Annelida;
b. Not as above, without a sucker
Class Hirudinea (leeches)
14
14a. Microscopic, front of body with two wheellike corona
that appear to spin as the animal feeds; back of body
appears as a segmented, telescoping leg with 2 “toes”
that are used for attachment
Phylum Rotifera (wheel animals)
b. Larger animals, not microscopic; easily visible to the
unaided eye; features not as above
15
15a. Body very elongated and worm-like, without distinct
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107
head or legs; Phylum Annelida;
b. Body not as above; may have wartlike “legs”,
hooklike jaws and/or siphonlike tail
Phylum Arthropoda; Class Insecta;
Class Oligochaeta (earthworms)
Order Diptera (fly larvae)
16a. With tentacles at one end (around mouth)
Phylum Cnidaria;
b. Without tentacles
Class Hydrozoa (hydras)
17
17a. With elongated whiplike proboscis (tongue)
extending from mouth
b. Body elongated and wormlike
Phylum Nemertinea (proboscis worms)
18
18a. Microscopic; not easily visible without magnification
b. Much larger and easily visible to unaided eye
19a. Body elongated, soft and delicate, flattened, often with
eyespots, tends to ball up when disturbed; Phylum
Platyhelminthes;
b. Body extremely long, thin, and wire-like, often
tangled into a knot
20a. Microscopic; with jointed legs and/or antennae
protruding from shells as it swims Phylum
Arthropoda; Class Crustacea;
b. Larger animals with 2 hard shells usually tightly
closed; often with brown barklike periostracum
covering outer surface of shell and pearly layer
on the inside; Phylum Mollusca;
21a. Microscopic; flattened body, usually with spines on its
surface, and with a forked tail end; gliding
movement
b. thin wormlike body that tapers at both ends, no distinct
head, makes whiplike, side to side movements
21
19
Class Turbellaria (planarians)
Phylum Nematomorpha (horsehair worms)
Class Crustacea-Ostracods (seed shrimp)
Class Bivalvia (clams)
Phylum Gastrotricha
Phylum Nematoda (roundworms)
22a. Body appears to be enclosed in a shell, with no
distinct head
b. Not as above
Class Crustacea-Ostracods (seed shrimp)
23
23a. Usually with a large pair of antennae, often branched,
extending from front of body, large eye clearly
visible
b. Not as above
Class Crustacea-Cladocera (water fleas)
24
24a. Entire body clearly segmented, pair of long antennae
usually extending at right angles to the body
b. Not as above
Class Crustacea-Copepoda (copepods)
2
25a. Small, arching segmented body with many paired
jointed appendages
b. Large animals, at least several inches long, pair of
prominent “pinchers toward front end, two
distinct pairs of antennae
Biol 1409: Diversity of Life – Lab Manual, Ziser, 2017.6
Class Crustacea-Amphipoda (amphipods)
Class Crustacea-Decapoda (crayfish)
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IV. Animal Diversity
The Invertebrates
Because of the great diversity in animal form and function we will concentrate our study on a few basic
designs seen in the animal kingdom by studying representative specimens of some of the larger groups
(phyla). Animal groups are very roughly divided into two main categories; the invertebrates and the
vertebrates.
Invertebrates are usually small animals. Most are lacking an internal skeleton or a backbone. The
great majority of animal species are invertebrates. We will look at examples of the following groups of
invertebrates:
A. Simple Animals
B. Worms
C. Parasites
D. Shelled Animals (Molluscs)
E. Arthropods
F. Echinoderms
Vertebrates are the animals we are most familiar with; fish, frogs, lizards, snakes, birds, mammals, etc.
Their defining characteristic is the presence of an internal skeleton of bone and/or cartilage, usually
including a backbone. We will look at examples of the following kinds of vertebrates:
G. Fishes
H. Amphibians
I. Reptiles
J. Birds
K. Mammals
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A. Some Simple Animals
1. Sponges (Atlas:
5th fig 7.1 – 7.7; 6th 7.1-7)
Some of the simplest animal phyla lack either true tissues (for example the Sponges) or true organs
(for example the Cnidaria)). Sponges are some of the simplest kinds of animals, they lack true
tissues and organs and yet are a very successful group. Their body is riddled with pores and canals
through which water is filtered for food. Most live in the ocean but some are found in freshwater
lakes and streams. Sponges secrete small rodlike structures called spicules, for support. These
spicules can be made of silica, calcium carbonate or a protein called spongin. Sometimes these
spicules are interwoven to form a complex supporting frame such as in the glass sponge or the
commercial sponge. Sponges are also atypical animals because they are sessile (nonmotile) as
adults, however their larvae do swim around before settling down. Another characteristic feature of
sponges is a unique kind of cell that they use to collect food called a collar cell or choanocyte.
Lab Activities:
1. Observe the preserved specimens of Scypha (=Grantia)
2. Now, look a a slide of a section of this organism
Slide: Scypha mls
(Atlas: 5th fig 7.4; 6th fig 7.4; 7th fig 7.6)
and identify the large space in the center of the organism, the spongocoel and the osculum.
Note also how the “wall” of the sponge is made up of various canals through which water
passes
3. Where in the sponge body would you expect to find collar cells?
4. Look at the slide of spicules and draw a few of them
Slide: Scypha spicule strew
(Atlas: 5th fig 7.6; 6th fig 7.6; handout)
5. Observe the variety of sponges on display and be able to recognize them as sponges. Note the
kind of skeleton each has: spongin fibers, calcium carbonate or silica.
6. Note the symbiotic crabs trapped within the venus flower basket (Euplectella) on display. How
did they get there and why are they there?
7. Observe the holes made by boring sponges and draw a few examples. How did the sponge make
this holes, and why?
2. Hydras and Corals (Atlas:
5th fig 7.8-44; 6th fig 7.8-45; 7th fig 7.11-51)
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The Hydras and Corals have two true tissues and a few simple organs. Their body structure takes
the form of a simple sac with tentacles around a mouth like opening pointed upward (called a
polyp).
While hydras lack true organs the mouth does open into a sac-like digestive cavity in which
digestion takes place. They also have a very simple type of nervous system called a nerve net.
Some corals secrete an exoskeleton of calcium carbonate which, over thousands or millions of
years produces large coral reefs and limestone rocks.
Hydras & Corals are predators. The most unusual kind of cell in the group is a stinging cell (or
cnidoocyte) which contains a poisonous harpoon-like nematocyst that they use to spear their prey
and “reel” it into their mouth.
Lab Activities:
1. Living Hydra. Hydra are common freshwater animals in ponds and streams in our area. If
living hydras are available: Place a living specimen in a watch glass with a little water. Also
place some daphnia (food for the hydra) in the same watch glass and place on a dissecting
scope. (Atlas: 5th see Fig 7.10-7.11)
a. Note the tentacles surrounding the mouth on the free or unattached end. These tentacles
help to capture and hold food. Watch carefully what happens when a food organism makes
contact with a tentacle. does the hydra use more than one tentacle to move the organism
toward the mouth? Is the organism oriented a certain way before being swallowed? After
swallowing the food does the hydra contract or remain elongated? What kind of organism is
the daphnia? does it have complex organs? Can you identify any of the organs that it has?
how does it move?
b. The hydra may have attached itself to the bottom of the dish by its basal disc. Special
adhesive gland cells secrete mucus which helps the organism to adhere to a surface.
Carefully loosen the hydra from the dish with a blunt probe then describe its locomotion or
reattachment.
c. Note the variety of hydra in the jar. Observe and describe each of the different types, how
do they differ? Why do they differ?
d. Take a hydra and place it on a regular microscope slide. Place the slide on the microscope
and cover with a cover slip. Add a drop of methylene blue to the right edge of the coverslip.
While watching through the scope touch a small piece of paper towel to the left edge of the
cover slip – this will draw the methylene blue under the coverslip toward the hydra. What
happens? Can you see any ejected nematocysts? Are they all the same or are there
different kinds? explain. Diagram some of them. Both of the organisms, the hydra and its
prey are freshwater organisms. Would they be part of the plankton? or part of the benthos?
explain.
2. Observe the slide below of a Hydra, one of the simplest Cnidarian animals. Locate and
identify the tentacles used for capturing food, the mouth in the center of the tentacles, and
the basal disc which it uses to attach to hard surfaces. Note any asexual buds.
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Slide: Hydra budding wm
(Atlas: 5th fig 7.10; 6th 7.10; 7th fig 7.14)
3. Jellyfish (Atlas:
5th fig 7.8-44; 6th fig 7.8-45; 7th fig 7.26-37)
Jellyfish are closely related to hydras and corals but their main form consists of an “umbrellashaped” body called a medusa in which the mouth and tentacles are pointed downward. Also their
body wall usually has a thick layer of jelly like material between their tissue layers giving them
their common name, jellyfish. Most jellyfish have a complex life cycle where they alternate
between two different body forms; the polyp and the medusae. The polyp is sometimes colonial,
usually sessile, and may reproduce sexually or asexually depending on the species. The medusae
swims as plankton near the surface of the ocean and usually reproduces sexually. The medusa also
has some simple sensory cells that detect light and help it maintain balance.
Lab Activities:
1. Observed the preserved jellyfish on display and locate the mouth, arms, tentacles and gonads
preserved: Aurelia jellyfish
2. Obelia is a very small jellyfish that produces a colony of polyps that are all interconnected.
Also, there are two different kinds of polyps in the colony. The feeding polyps have tentacles
and somewhat resemble the hydra that you looked at earlier. The reproductive polyps lack
tentacles and look more like clubs. The reproductive polyps bud off medusa which float free
and, when mature, will reproduce sexually to complete the life cycle.
Observe the slides of Obelia below and distinguish between the medusa and the polyp
(=hydroid) forms. How many individual polyps are included in the piece of the hydroid
colony that you have on the slide. Are they all the same shape? Explain. How easily can
you distinguish between polyps and medusae? in solitary animals? in colonial animals?
Slides: Obelia hydroid colony wm
(Atlas: 5th fig 7.17-19; 6th fig 7.17-19; 7th fig 7.22-3)
Obelia medusae wm
(Atlas: 5th fig 7.20-21; 6th fig 7.20-21; 7th fig 7.24-5)
3. Review “Animal Life Cycles” where it reviews the life cycle of a jellyfish and make sure
you understand the concept of “alternation of generations’; be able to distinguish between
the polyp, the medusa, the asexual stage and the sexual stage of its life cycle.
a. Observe the preserved jellyfish – this is the medusa stage (sexual) of the life cycle
Preserved:
adult jellyfish
b. Observe the slide of the planula larva. This is the larval stage of jellyfish produced by fusion
of egg and sperm cells. The planula will swim in the plankton for a while then settle down
on a solid substrate.
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Slide: planula larva
c. Observe the slides of the scyphistoma and strobila. These are the polyp stage of the jellyfish.
Note how small they are compared to the jellyfish.
Slides: scyphistoma
strobila
d. The strobila are budding (asexual reproduction) tiny jellyfish. The young medusae are called
the ephyra. They will grow into the adult jellyfish
Slide: ephyra
(Atlas: 5th fig 7.17, 7.23-27; 6th fig 7.23-28; 7th fig 7.27-30)
4. Some members of this group are quite dangerous, even lethal to humans. Note the
Portuguese Man-O-War on display; this is a colonial Cnidarian in which some members of
the group are responsible for feeding, others for killing or stunning the prey, others for
flotation, etc. Using the illustrations provided, can you recognize any individual polyps in
the colony? What makes this organism so dangerous?
4. Planarians
(Atlas: 5th fig 7.45-8; 6th fig 7.46-9; 7th fig 7.53-7)
Planarians are some of the simplest animals that have true organs and organ systems. They are
common animals in creeks and ponds around central Texas. Most are relatively small (or at least
thin due to their flattened bodies) with no body cavity or circulatory system but members of this
group do have organs and organ systems. The flatworms have a simple digestive tract with a
mouth but no anus. After absorption, undigested food is expelled through the mouth as in the
hydra you looked at earlier. They have simple sense organs including eyespots which act as
photoreceptors and auricles which detect chemicals in the water. One group of flatworms lives in
the ocean and freshwater lakes and ponds. There are also a few that are terrestrial, that is, they
live on land. Both are common in the Austin area.
Lab Activities:
2 pts Extra Credit: Bring in a live freshwater or land planarian on the day “simple animals” are studied in lab. Be sure to
check in your sample before the beginning of the lab
1. Live Planaria. If live planarians are available use a wide mouthed dropper to pipette one or two
into a small watch glass as instructed. View using the dissecting scope. Note the head end with
the eyespots that detect light and the auricles, earlike flaps on the side of the head that detect
chemicals in the water (so they are really more like a nose or taste buds)
Observe the smooth gliding motion of the animal as it uses microscopic cilia and muscular
contractions of the body wall to move. Gently touch the worm in various places with a
toothpick and note its response. Does this animal have a nervous system?
Place a very small piece of liver (beef or pork) in the watch glass and note the animal’s
response. Try to locate its mouth (It’s NOT at the front end). The mouth is at the end of a
straw-like, muscular throat or pharynx and is quite prehensile, like the trunk of an elephant.
Describe how it uses its mouth to eat the food.
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2. Look at the slide of the planarian and find the head, eyespots, and auricles on the slide mounted
specimen. This animal has been stainded to show its highly branched digestive tract
(=gastrovascular cavity). Note the three main branches with numerous side branches; since this
animal has no circulatory system this branching is an alternate way to get food to all cells in the
body. Note also the tubelike pharynx with the mouth near the center of the animal.
Slide: Planaria, injected, wm
(Atlas: 4th p107; 45th fig 7.46; 6th fig 7.46-7; 7th fig 7.55)
3. Compare other planaria on display to the planarian you just studied; what are the similarities
and differences
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B. “Worms”
Worm-like animals typically have elongated, usually cylindrical bodies usually with a mouth at the
front end. Some live in burrows or tubes and most (but not all) have a complete digestive tract. As you
learn the anatomy and characteristics of these animals compare them to the simple animals you have
already observed. How do each of these animals differ from each other?
1. Vinegar Eels
Vinegar Eels are Roundworms (=Nematode Phylum) and are mostly free living worms with
elongated cylindrical body tapered at both ends. They move with a characteristic “s” movement
since their body wall has only longitudinal muscle layers which work against a hydrostatic
skeleton. They have a simple but complete digestive tract with mouth and anus so that food
travels in one direction only. They have a simple body cavity allowing for greater development and
differentiation of body layers and internal structures. Vinegar Eels are small free living nematodes
found in rotting fruits.
Lab Activities:
1 pt Extra Credit: Bring in a piece of rotting fruit that has fallen to the ground from a fruit tree (NOT from the grocery
store) on the day “worm’ are studied in lab. After lab begins, make a wet mount of a small piece of the fruit and look
for roundworms in your sample. Be sure to check in your sample before the beginning of the lab
1. Live Vinegar Eels: Anguillula aceti
a. . Place a drop of the culture on a clean glass slide and examine under low power.
b. Note characteristic thrashing movement that the animal makes. Because they have only
longitudinal muscles in the body wall nematodes can only flex the body from side to side.
They can do little more than thrash in water. But add a few grains of sand to a slide and
note how they move among the grains.
c. To study their anatomy you may need to make another wet mount and add a drop of detain
to a slide. Can you determine which is the front end of the animal? Note at the blunt end,
the mouth, and the muscular pharynx. Can you see the intestine? Try to find a female and
note the developing juvenile worms in the uterus (vinegar eels bear live young) Try to
find the ovary. In the male try to identify the testis.
2. Sand Worms, Tube Worms, Fan Worms
These marine worms are relatives of the earthworm. Note that they are also segmented and most
lack a distinct head. Most marine worms have a pair of appendages on each segment that can be used
for swimming and gathering food. In some marine worms some of these appendages are modified into
large showy fans and other kinds of food gathering organs. they might also be used as “gills” or for
protection.
Lab Activities:
1. Locate and identify the following external structures on the preserved worm below: mouth,
jaws, tentacles, eyes, pharynx, parapodia, segments
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Preserved: sandworm, Nereis
(Atlas: 4th fig 7.63-4; 5th fig 7.81-4; 6th 7.83-6; 7th fig 7.103-4)
2. Look at the other examples of related worms on display and note how the appendages
(parapodia)
have been modified in a variety of ways
3. Earthworms (Atlas:
4th p116-118; 5th fig 7.85-94; 6th fig 7.83-94)
Earthworms are probably the most familiar of worms. They have elongated, wormlike bodies with
repeating segments. They have a more efficient digestive tract than the hydra or planarian since it
has two openings, a mouth and an anus; food travels only one way as it is digested and absorbed.
Segmented worms also have a circulatory system with beating hearts to help to distribute food
and oxygen. they also have an excretory system, the nephridia, to rid the body of metabolic wastes.
Lumbricus is a common species of earthworm introduced into the US from Europe. Though it
seems relatively large, some earthworms get much larger, as long as 10 feet.
Lab Activities:
1 pt Extra Credit: Bring in a live earthworm. Be sure to check in your sample before the beginning of the lab
Preserved: earthworm
(Atlas: 5th fig 7.85-91; 6th fig 7.87-92; 7th fig 7.107-112)
1. External Anatomy of an earthworm:
Get an earthworm from the container, place it in one of the dissecting trays and gently rinse
with water to remove some of the preservative.
The most conspicuous feature is the presence of body segments. Find the mouth at the anterior
end. The anterior end can be most easily identified by the presence of a lighter, thicker area of
the body, the clitellum, a reproductive structure, about a third of the way back from the mouth.
Notice that the clitellum does not extend completely around the animal, it is thickest on the top
and absent on the bottom of the animal. Note the anus at the other end of the animal. Gently
rub your fingers down the sides of the earthworm and feel the bristle-like setae. Use a
dissecting scope or magnifying glass to see them. For the earthworm, these setae allow it to
hold itself into its burrow when a bird is pulling on the other end!
2. Internal Anatomy of an earthworm:
Place the earthworm “clitellum-side up” in a dissecting tray and pin the very front and back of
the worm to the tray. Use a razor blade or scalpel to make a shallow incision on the dorsal body
wall from behind the clitellum up to the mouth. Spread the body wall and pin it open as
demonstrated (see illustration). Note that the segments that you can see on the outside of the
animal are divided inside the animal by thin walls. Most of the body cavity is filled with the
digestive tract running through each segment from mouth to anus (a complete digestive
tract). The mouth opens into a muscular pharynx just as in roundworms. If you dissected the
animal carefully you might be able to see two small whitish bulbs at the very front of the
pharynx: this is the animal’s ganglia which act as a simple brain.
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Note the 5 pairs of hearts just behind the pharynx. Earthworms have a closed circulatory
system, meaning that blood flows inside of vessels (arteries-capillaries-veins). The hearts
keep the blood circulating within these vessels. The blood of earthworms contains the same red
oxygen carrying pigment as human blood, hemoglobin.
Surrounding the digestive system around and just behind the area where you found the hearts
are various reproductive organs. Earthworms are hermaphrodites and therefore have both
ovaries and testes. The ovaries and testes are quite hard to see and you don’t need to find them,
but you should be able to notice several pairs of large whitish structures, these are the seminal
vesicles, storage sacs where sperm mature before they are released, and much smaller, seminal
receptacles, where sperm are received during copulation. When earthworms mate, they align
themselves in opposite directions (see illustration) so each can fertilize the eggs of the other
worm.
Behind the area where the hearts and reproductive organs surround the digestive tract you will
find two enlargements of the tract. The first is a storage area called the crop. The second is a
muscular area called the gizzard that helps grind up the food for easier digestion.
Behind the gizzard, the intestine continues for the rest of the length of the animal. In the
intestine digestion is completed and nutrients are absorbed into the blood. Cut the intestine
across its length and note an infolding of the intestine (called the typhlosole, see illustrations)
that increases the area available for absorption; making the process more efficient.
When you are finished with your dissections, rinse and dry pan, pins, tools, and discard the
animals in the white bucket marked “scraps”
3. Look at the slide of an earthworm nervous system and you will see how the ganglia are attached
to two nerve cords which extend down the length of the animal
Slide: earthworm nervous system wm
4. Demonstration: Other Worm-like Animals
The “worm” body plan is a very common and successful form for many different kinds of animals.
Not only for the familiar earthworms and sand worms but a variety of more specialized and more
cryptic animal phyla. The elongated body allows the animal to burrow in soft sediments or hide in
the rocky crevasses of rocks and reefs. With only the head protruding to feed, most of the body is
hidden and well protected from would-be predators. The front ends of some worms are often
modified into elaborate feeding organs for filtering the water or engulfing sediment. A few
specialized worms however are voracious predators of the plankton or lack a gut all together and
receive nutrients from symbiotic bacteria.
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Look at the slides, preserved materials and illustrations of some of the different kinds of worms
below to see the diversity of the worm body plan. What are their similarities? What are their
differences?
peanut worms (Sipuncula) - marine worms with tentacles for feeding on one end, live in burrows
in sandy sediment
spoon worms (Echiura) - sausage shaped marine worms in shallow water sediments or rocky
crevasses
beard worms (Pogonophora) - usually found in deep waters, very common at hydrothermal vents,
have long tentacles that give them a beard-like appearance, have
no mouth or digestive tract and get their nutrients from symbiotic
bacteria living in their tissues
velvet worms (Onycophora) - brightly colored cylindrical body with up to two dozen pairs of legs,
jaws and antennae at front end
arrow worms(Chaetognatha) - voracious planktonic predator in shallow waters with large jaws
acorn worms (Hemichordata) - chordates closest relatives, in tubes in soft sediment feed like
earthworms, eating the sediment and letting the gut sort out the
nutrients
horsehair worms (Nematomorpha) - also called gordion worms for their ability to tie themselves
into knots, often found in yards and sidewalks after summer rains,
juveniles parasitic in insects
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C. The Molluscs - Shelled Animals
Many animals including clams, snails and their relatives secrete and live inside some kind of shell. This
shell is usually a type of exoskeleton that is used for support and sometimes for protection from
predators. In some animals the “shell” consists of a group of interconnected plates underneath a thin
epidermis.
2 pts Extra Credit: bring in a LIVE mollusc on the lab day that we study Shelled Animals. Be sure to check your sample
in before lab begins.
1. Clams (Atlas:
5th fig 7.70-3; 6th fig 7.70-3; 7th fig 7.80-8)
Clams secrete two shells that are hinged together and can completely enclose the animal’s soft
parts. Most clams are benthic filter feeders and either spend their lives attached to some hard
substrate such as rocks or pilings or burrowing in soft sediment.
Lab Activities:
1. Study the shell of a clam:
Preserved: whole shells and pieces of shells
Find the three layers of the shell; the outermost periostracum – usually a covering of soft,
organic material, the middle prismatic layer – this is the thickest layer that provides most of the
strength for the shell, and the inner nacreous layer – usually a pearly white, blue or other
colored, smooth layer. This inner layer is often used to make jewelry and buttons. The same
kind of shell material is used by the animal to cover irritants such as sand grains and may
eventually produce pearls, also used for jewelry.
2. Clam Dissection:
Preserved: clam
(Atlas: 5th fig 7.70-3; 6th fig 7.70-3; 7th fig 7.84-8)
With your instructor’s help, open the clam to identify some of the internal structures. Clam
shells are usually difficult to open because of one or two strong adductor muscles that contract
to hold the 2 halves closed. These muscles are cut to be able to open them. Find the adductor
muscles near the hinge of the shells. Note the thin sheets of tissue just inside the shells. This is
the mantle and actually secretes the shells as the animal grows. Determine the posterior end of
the animal (Ask for help if you can’t figure it out) and note that the edges of the mantle are
thickened into two siphons. Most clams are filter feeders and create a continuous flow of
water that comes in one siphon and out the other. As the water passes over the gills, two thin
sheets of tissue toward the hinges, nutrients are filtered out and sent to the mouth. The mouth
is located at the front of two pairs of smaller sheets of tissues called the labial palps.
The gills also remove O2 from the water. In some clams the gills also become a brood chamber
(=marsupium) for the developing embryos.
Extending from between the two pairs of gills is a hard, muscular structure called the foot.
Clams are able to extend this out of the shell to burrow into the sediment or to move around on
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its surface. The mass of tissue above the foot contains the digestive & reproductive systems of
the clam.
2. Snails
Snails are relatives of clams and have only a single shell that is usually coiled. Snails are able to
retract into their shell for protection. Some can even close the opening with an operculum. Some
snails have completely lost their shell and are called slugs
Lab Activities:
1. Live Snails
If live snails are available observe their external features, particularly eyes, tentacles and mouth.
Note how they move by gliding on a mucus trail. Note their reactions to sudden movements or
noises.
2. External Anatomy
Preserved: snail
(Atlas: 6th fig 7.69; 7th fig 7.76-9)
Study the shell of the preserved snail. note the kind of coiling and find the growth lines. Is
there an operculum present. locate the head with tentacles. The eyes of a snail are on the tips
of the largest pair of tentacles. Find the mouth, can you see the radula inside the mouth? Note
the foot on which the snail glides. Most of the internal organs of the snail are inside the shell
and will not be dissected here.
2. Radula
Slide: radula
(Atlas: 6th fig 7.68; 7th fig 7.78)
The radula is the main feeding organ of snails. It consists of rows of file-like teeth. Most use it
to scrape algae off of rocks and sediment. Others use it as a drill to penetrate the shells of other
molluscs on which they feed
3. Cephalopods
Cephalopods include octopus, squid and cuttlefish. Unlike other molluscs, the shell in this group
has been greatly reduced or completely lost. The mantle becomes the protective outer covering and
the foot has been modified into arms and tentacles.
Lab Activities:
1. External Anatomy
Preserved: squid
(Atlas: 6th fig 7.80; 7th fig 7.94)
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Using your atlas, find the mantle, fins, funnel, eyes, arms, and tentacles. The long tentacles
can shoot out to quickly catch unsuspecting prey. Note the suckers on arms and tentacles.
Also, observe specimens that show chromatophores or pigment cells. Some cephalopods are
noted for their ability to quickly change colors and to even put on a “light show” as part of their
mating displays.
2. Internal Anatomy
Preserved: squid
(Atlas: 6th fig 7.79-82; 7th fig 7.93-6)
place the squid so that the funnel is on the top then use scissors to cut from the edge of the
mantle to the tip (as in the illustration in your atlas). Pin the mantle open. If you have a female,
remove a pair of large whitish nidamental glands to view the organs below. Now locate the
following organs: gills, , rectum, ink sac, stomach, cecum, ovaries or testis.
3. Other Cephalopods
Look at examples of other kinds of cephalopods and note especially the different kinds of shells
found in the group.
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D. Some Parasitic Animals
Parasites are found in all kingdoms of life but the animal kindgom contains, by far, the greatest variety
and diversity of parasitic organisms. Parasitism is a kind of symbiosis in which one organism, the
parasite, benefits from the relationship and the other organism, the host, is harmed by the relationship.
The actual kind of parasitic relationship varies in several ways. Ectoparasites live and feed on the
outside of their hosts, endoparasites live completely inside the host, often in the digestive, respiratory
or urinary system.
Living within the host, endoparasites are found in environments every bit as variable as those
experienced by aquatic animals; each host and each internal organ differs in the range of conditions to
which the parasite is exposed. The life cycle of many parasites includes more than one host and more
than one larval form. Any host in which the larval parasites are found is referred to as an intermediate
host. The host of the adult parasite is referred to as the final (or definitive) host.
Parasites have developed a variety of adaptations to be successful in such environments. Some of the
most important adaptations seen in parasites are:
1. Structures for penetration and attachment to host
eg. hooks, suckers, teeth, enzymes
2. Reduced superfluous structures
such as nervous system, sense organs, muscles, digestive tract, etc
3. Usually have a resistant stage in life cycle
for getting from one host to another
4. Tendency toward being Hermaphrodite
only need any two, not male and female
some can even self fertilize if necessaryà but usually don’t
5. Enhancement of reproductive capacity
reproductive organs are often the largest, most apparent organ systems present
often able to produce of large #’s of eggs
6. Complex Life Cycle usually with intermediate larval stages in intermediate hosts
to enhance chances of getting to final host
The effects of the parasite on its host also varies considerably. Evolution favors those parasites who do
the least harm to their hosts since the longer the host lives, the better the chances that a parasite can
produce successful offspring. The most successful parasites are usually those who occupy their hosts
with little significant impact. Typically the most critical time for the host is during the infection
process when the larvae are migrating through the body before they reach their preferred organ.
Parasites occasionally cause problems by producing toxins which can cause fever and organ damage.
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1. Liver and Blood Flukes
The flukes are parasites found in the digestive organs or the blood of their hosts. These often have
complex life cycles that enhance their abilities to get from one host to another. These life cycles
usually include several intermediate hosts in addition to the final host of the adult. They also
generally produce numerous eggs and larvae to insure their success in finding new hosts. For this
reason the reproductive system is often very well developed in these animals. Also, since they
absorb food from their host, they don’t need a very complex digestive system – the food is already
digested, so you will notice that the digestive system is not as elaborate as was the one in the
nonparasitic planarian.
Lab Activities:
1. Clonorchis, commonly called the Chinese liver fluke, is a relative of the sheep liver fluke above
and has a similar anatomy and life cycle. Observe the slide below and find: oral sucker,
ventral sucker, intestine, testes, uterus with eggs
Slide: Clonorchis sinensis, wm
(Atlas: 4th p 109; 5th fig 7.52-3; 6th fig 7.53-4; 7th fig 7.61-2)
2. Fasciola, the sheep liver fluke: is one of the largest flukes. Like most flukes, Fasciola is an
hermaphrodite. Note the reproductive organs particularly the ovaries, uterus and testes.
Note also the two suckers, the oral sucker around the mouth and the ventral sucker near the
beginning of the uterus. Look at the slide below on the Dissecting Scope.
Slide: Fasciola hepatica wm
(Atlas: 5th fig 7.49, 7.51, 7.59; 6th fig 7.50; 7th fig 7.59)
3. The Blood Fluke, Schistosoma. is unusual for parasitic flukes since it is dioecious. Still the
animal has adapted to facilitate sexual reproduction. Observe the slide below:
Slides: Schistosoma mansoni male & female wm,
Schistosoma mansoni male wm,
Schistosoma mansoni female wm
note how the female is smaller and carried by the male in a groove on the underside of the
animal. This facilitates egg productionand dispersal of the young to other hosts.
4. Flukes are parasites characterized by a complex life cycle with several larval stages and one or
more intermediate hosts along with the final host. Observe the slides below and identify the
tadpole-like cercariae as one of these stages. The cercariae are usually the stage that enters the
final host to become the adult parasite.
Slides: Cercariae wm or Schistosoma cercaria or
Fasciola hepatica cercariae wm
(Atlas: 5th fig 7.54, 7.57; 6th 7.52, 7.55, 7.58; 7th fig 7.63)
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2. Tapeworms
Tapeworms are also intestinal parasites but are even better adapted for a parasitic lifestyle. They
have completely lost any trace of a digestive system, their sense organs and nervous system are
greatly reduced, they have additional structures for attachment and an even more efficient
reproductive system. Their life cycle is not as complicated as in the flukes, the tapeworms usually
produce just one larva that is in one intermediate host.
Lab Activities:
1. The adult of the tapeworm Taenia sp. is found in the human intestine, the larval stage is
found in the muscles of cattle and pigs. Observe the slide below and identify the attachment
organ, the scolex, and know: hooks, suckers
Slide: Taenia solium, scolex, wm
(Atlas: 4th fig 7.38a & 7.39; 5th fig 7.58-62; 6th fig 7.59a & 7.60; 7th fig 7.67-8)
2. On the slide below note the chain of reproductive sacs, the proglottids. Also know: proglottid,
uterus
Slide: Taenia pisiformis mature proglottid
(Atlas: 4th fig 7.38b &7.41; 5th fig 7.58b & 7.61; 6th fig 7.59b & 7.62; 7th fig 7.70)
3. When the eggs are fertilized by sperm from another proglottid or another tapeworm the uterus
expands to completely fill the proglottid; it becomes an egg sac with 1000’s of fertilized eggs as
in the slide below:
Slide: Taenia pisiformis gravid (=ripe) proglottid, wm
(Atlas: 4th fig 7.38c; 5th fig 7.58c & 7.62; 6th fig 7.59c & 7.63; 7th fig 7.71)
4. A tapeworm larva is called a bladderworm (or cysticercus); it usually embeds in muscle tissue
of its intermediate host. When eaten by the final host it develops into the adult tapeworm.
Recognize the bladderworm on the slide below:
Slide: Taenia pisiformis Cysticercus wm
(see handout)
3. Roundworms
Ascaris is a common parasite in the intestine of pigs, horses, and humans. It is the largest
roundworm parasite.
Lab Activities:
1. Dissect a male and female roundworm as described below:
Preserved: male & female Ascaris
(Atlas: 4th fig 7.42-4; 5th fig 7.95-9; 6th fig 7.97-100; 7th fig 7.116-20)
a. External Features:
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Males can be distinguished from females by their smaller size and the curled posterior end.
Males often have a pair of setae protruding from the anus. The mouth, at the anterior end,
is surrounded by three lips (use a magnifying glass to see). The anus is on the ventral side
near the posterior end.
b. Internal Organs:
Place the worm in a dissecting pan and add enough water to cover the worm.
Use a small, sharp pin to penetrate the body wall directly opposite the anus. Push the pin in
just enough to pierce the body wall, do not push it all the way into the animal. Drag the pin
forward being careful not to injure any of the internal organs.
As one person slits the skin, one or two others should use dissecting pins to carefully spread
the body wall open and pin it to the tray to expose the internal organs. The body wall and
the organs are very thin and delicate. You will probably need to place pins every inch or
two to keep the body wall open.
The body is covered by a thin cuticle. Beneath the epidermis is a thin layer of muscle that
allows the animal to make the characteristic side to side whip-like movements that you
saw in the vinegar eel (another roundworm). The digestive system is simple and consists of
a mouth, a long, flat, very fragile, flattened intestine that runs down the length of the
anmal, and a ventral anus.
Filling up most of the body are the reproductive organs (remember, this critter is a parasite).
The female reproductive system is basically “Y”- shaped and consists of a short vagina
which opens on the ventral side about one third back from the anterior end of the body. The
vagina splits into two long, thick uteri where eggs are stored. The female reproductive
system terminates in very thin, threadlike, highly tangled ovaries where the eggs are
produced.
The male reproductive system consists of a single long tube which gets progressively
smaller. The ejaculatory duct opens at the anus. Attached to it is the largest tube, the
seminal vesicle which stores sperm. The thinnest part of the tube is the testis where the
sperm cells are made.
2. Look at the slides below of other parasitic roundworms & their larvae. Learn where they are
found and how they are spread to their final hosts. Compare them to Ascaris in size and general
structure.
Slide: Trichinella spiralis encysted larva wm (causes trichinosis)
(Atlas: 5th fig 7.103; 6th fig 7.105; 7th fig 7.124)
Slide: Enterobius vermicularis wm (pinworm)
Preserved & Biosmount: dog heartworm
(Atlas: 6th fig 7.104; 7th fig 7.123)
4. Some Examples of Ectoparasites
Some parasites live on the outside, rather than inside, their hosts. These ectoparasites generally
feed on blood. Some ectoparasites are more or less permanent residents on their hosts, others only
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attack while feeding then leave their host to digest their meal. Ectoparasites are found in a wide
variety of animal phyla. Most of us are familiar with mites, ticks, lice, leeches, fleas, mosquitoes,
etc., sometimes from direct experience with them. In this exercise you will learn to recognize a
variety of the more common ectoparasites that affect our lives.
Lab Activities:
Look at the slides, preserved materials and illustrations of ectoparasites available. Recognize each
general type. Know the main effects these parasites have on their hosts and explain how these
effects differ from those of the endoparasites that you studied.
1. Leeches are members of the segmented worm (annelid) phylum. While most leeches are small
aquatic predators, some are blood feeding parasites. Note the two suckers and the mouth of the
leech.
Slide: leech wm
(see handout)
Preserved: medicinal leech
(Atlas: 4th fig 7.75-6; 5th fig 7.93-4; 6th fig 7.95-6; 7th fig 7.114)
2. Mites & Ticks are arthropods related to spiders and scorpions. Virtually all species of ticks and
many mites are ectoparasites at some point in their life cycle. They are attracted to their hosts
by chemical cues. Their greatest danger to humans is in the diseases they transmit while they
feed
Slide: Tick & mite, wm
(see handout)
Slide: Lone Star tick wm
(Atlas: 4th fig 7.81; 5th fig 7.110; 6th fig 7.112; 7th fig 7.133-4)
3. Lice are arthropods in the insect group that live on hair and clothing when not feeding.
Slide: Pediculus humanus capitis wm
(see handout)
4. Mosquitoes are another common blood feeding insect. The larvae are aquatic and are found in
any standing water. Many mosquitoes are vectors for devastating diseases such as malaria.
Slide: Mosquito life cycle or Culex wm
(see handout)
5. Fleas are insects that are common pests of domesticated animals and are noted for their jumping
abilities. Most of the 1000 species lay eggs in their hosts nests or in their fur.
Slide: flea (Ctenocephalides) male & female, wm
(Atlas: 4th fig 7.95; 5th fig 7.136; 6th fig 7.145; 7th fig 7.167)
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E. Arthropods
Arthropods are the largest and most successful group (phylum) of organisms (of any kingdom!) on the
planet. Fully two thirds of all life on earth are arthropod species. They include; spiders, crabs, shrimp,
insects, centipedes, millipedes and numerous other groups all of which share the basic characteristics of
having a chitinous exoskeleton, body divided into segments, and paired jointed appendages. Of all the
invertebrates, the arthropods are the most complex and diverse in terms of structures and physiology.
One of the sources of the diversity of the group is the diversity of form and function of the paired
appendages. They have been modified in various groups for feeding, walking, swimming, web
building, reproduction, and as sensory structures.
All arthropods share the following characteristics:
à a hardened jointed exoskeleton made of chitin that must be molted for growth
à a distinct head with a variety of sense organs
à a segmented body
à paired jointed appendages
Four main kinds of living (not fossils) arthropods are the:
1. Myriopods (centipedes, millipedes)
2. Chelicerates (horseshoe crabs, spiders, scorpions, mites and ticks)
3. Crustaceans (crabs, crayfish, shrimp and barnacles)
4. Insects (dragonflies, butterflies, beetles, bugs, flies, etc)
The members of each group can be distinguished by a characteristic body plan and a few distinctive
organs as described below.
2 pts Extra Credit: Bring in a live example of at least two of the 4 major kinds of arthropods on the day we cover them in
lab. Be sure to check in before class begins to get your points.
1. The Myriopods
Centipedes and millipedes are typically long, segmented animals with legs on most segments. They are
generally found in soil and leaf litter and in protected areas under rocks and logs. All members of this
group have a distinct head rather than a cephalothorax. Members of this group also have mandibles as
their main mouthparts. Most have a single pair of antennae and compound eyes. The rest of the body
consists of similar segments, each with one or two pairs of legs. You may need a hand lens or the
dissecting scope to see all the structures below.
Lab Activities:
1. Centipedes
Preserved: centipedes
(Atlas: 5th fig 7.142; 6th fig 7.151-2; 7th fig 7.174)
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Centipedes are generally predators. They typically have a flattened body and can be distinguished
from millipedes in that they typically have one pair of legs per body segment. The first pair of
appendages is modified into poison claws which, in some species, can cause extremely painful
stings. Locate the head, poison claw, antennae, mandibles and eyes.
*Do not discard centipede, return to jar when you complete your observations
2. Millipedes
Preserved: millipedes
(Atlas: 5th fig 7.143; 6th fig 7.153-4; 7th fig 7.175)
Millipedes are herbivores and are generally harmless to humans. Their body is typically more
cylindrical although in our area species with flattened bodies are common. They are most easily
distinguished from centipedes in having two pairs of legs per body segment. Locate the head,
antennae, mandibles and eyes.
*Do not discard millipede, return to jar when you complete your observations
2. The Chelicerates
Except for the horseshoe crab, most chelicerates live on land and most have only simple eyes.
Chelicerates do not have a distinct head, instead, it is part of a cephalothorax which includes the head
and the part of the body with most of the internal organs. Chelicerates also have distinctive feeding
appendages called chelicerae that are pincher like or fang like, and a second pair of feeding appendages
called pedipalps. Chelicerates are also the only arthropods that do not have antennae.
Lab Activities:
1. The horseshoe crab: Limulus sp.
Preserved: horseshoe crab
(Atlas: 4th fig 7.78; 5th fig 7.107; 6th 7.109; 7th fig 7.131)
The horseshoe crab is is an ancient animal and has been around for 100’s of millions of years.
Today they are common in shallow waters along the Atlantic coast.
The body is subdivided into the larger shield-like cephalothorax, abdomen and a long
spinelike telson. On the cephalothorax, note the two kinds of eyes, the large compound eyes
and the much smaller simple eyes. The compound eyes can form crude images and detect
movement (of an approaching predator for instance) the simple eyes detect only light and dark.
On the underside of the cephalothorax are 4 pairs of walking legs and various other appendages.
Limulus eats worms, clams and other small invertebrates that live in and on the sediment. The
mouth of the horseshoe crab is located within the circle of appendages. Note the stiff spines on
the bases of the legs (called gnathobases) used to push food into the mouth. The first pair of
appendages are the chelicerae, small appendages with a pair of pinchers on the end that are
used to grasp food and place it into the mouth. The second pair of appendages are called the
pedipalps which also help in feeding.
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The underside of the abdomen has the gills, called book gills in Limulus because if you lift
some of the flaps you will see the gills appearing as many thin pagelike sheets underneath. The
anus is in the soft tissue between the abdomen and the telson.
*Do not discard horseshoe crabs, return to bucket when you complete your observations
2. The Garden Spider, Argiope sp.
Preserved: spiders
(Atlas: 4th fig 7.79; 5th fig 7.108, 7.111; 6th 7.113; 7th fig 7.135)
A common spider worldwide and in the Austin area is the large garden spider. It is brightly
colored and weaves a large intricate web to trap prey. You may need a hand lens or the
dissecting scope to see all the structures below.
Again note the cephalothorax and the abdomen. The cephalothorax contains several pairs of
simple eyes (no compound eyes) and the feeding appendages; the chelicerae and pedipalps.
The chelicerae are very small and have retractable fangs which inject venom into the prey to
immobilize or kill it. The pedipalps are slightly smaller appendages to the sides of the fangs.
The abdomen contains the spinnerets that produce silk for the web.
*Do not discard spiders, return to jar when you complete your observations
3. The scorpion
Preserved: scorpions
(Atlas: 4th fig 7.835th fig 7.113; 6th 7.115; note: stinger, walking legs, pedipalp and
abdomen are mislabeled in atlas; 7th fig 7.137)
Scorpions are also common in our area, Central Texas is home to two species of scorpions. You
may need a hand lens or the dissecting scope to see all the structures below.
Again, note the cephalothorax that contains the sense organs, feeding appendages and legs.
The segments behind the cephalothorax are considered the abdomen, note how the last several
are much smaller and more flexible than the larger, first ones and that the smaller segments
terminate in a stinging barb (=aculeus). Near the front of the cephalothorax are a pair of small
eyes. In front of that are the feeding appendages the small pincherlike chelicerae and the much
larger pincherlike pedipalps that resemble the pinchers of a crab or crayfish. Also note that
scorpions, like spiders, have 4 pairs of legs.
*Do not discard scorpions, return to jar when you complete your observations
4. Note other examples of chelicerates that are on display
3. The Crustacea
Most crustaceans are aquatic, in both marine and freshwaters. They make up a significant part of the
plankton and the benthos of aquatic habitats. Only a few have moved onto land, the common
sowbugs and pillbugs. Like the chelicerates, most crustaceans also have a cephalothorax rather than a
distinct head. They differ from chelicerates in that their main feeding structures are jaw-like
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mandibles. They also have several other pairs of feeding appendages that help to take in food.
Crustaceans also usually have two pairs of antennae.
Lab Activities:
1. The Crayfish: Procambarus sp.
Preserved: crayfish
(Atlas: 4th fig 7.85-8; 5th fig 7.118-26; 6th fig 7.121-9; 7th fig 7.145-53)
i. External Anatomy: Observe that the crayfish body is subdivided into a cephalothorax and
an abdomen. Near the front of the cephalothorax are a pair of compound eyes and two
pairs of antennae. Near the bases of the antennae are several pairs of feeding appendages,
gently move them aside with a probe or forceps and note to hard, whitish mandibles (jaws)
that serve as the animals main feeding structures. On the underside of the cephalothorax are
5 pairs of walking legs, the first pair are much larger with large pinching claws at the end.
The abdomen contains pairs of smaller appendages called swimmerets used in swimming
and, in females to care for the egg mass. In males, the first two pairs are modified and are
used to transfer sperm to the female during reproduction. At the end of the abdomen is
the fan like tail (telson) used in swimming. How many different functions do the crayfish
appendages perform?
ii. Internal Anatomy: Carefully remove the top of the cephalothorax by peeling it upwards
and off or by cutting an oval area around the top of the entire cephalothorax and carefully
lifting it off. Looking down into the body you should see a diamond shaped heart near the
surface, which may be inside a clear membranous sac. Note the two holes or slits in the
heart; arthropods have an open circulatory system. The body fluids of crustaceans
contains an oxygen carrying proteins that contains copper so the fluids appears bluish in
living animals. The body fluids enter the heart through these openings and are then pumped
through vessels to various parts of the body.
On each side of the body cavity are numerous feathery gills that are attached to the bases of
the walking legs. The gills are used to exchange oxygen and carbon dioxide.
In front of the heart is a sac with hardened ridges and teeth inside, this is the stomach. The
teeth inside are called the gastric mill since they grind up the food. Behind the stomach and
underneath the heart are the reproductive organs, either ovaries or testes. Beneath them is
a large digestive gland that secretes digestive enzymes into the stomach.
The abdomen of crayfish and shrimp are referred to as “tails”. Why is this an incorrect
term? Cut through the exoskeleton along the top of the abdomen. Note that it is packed
with muscle tissue. Crayfish (and shrimp) move quickest by moving backwards with these
powerful muscles and the flipper-like telson. This is also the part of the crayfish (or lobster,
or shrimp) that seafood lovers enjoy the most. How does this compare with the abdomen of
a crab? On the upper surface of the abdomen is a dark tube, the intestine filled with
undigested wastes, that is referred to as the “vein” in more polite circles where they remove
it before cooking the animals.
2. Look at the other examples of crustaceans on display. Can you locate the cephalothorax, the
two pairs of antennae, etc?
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4. The Insects
Insects have a distinct head, thorax and abdomen with legs only on the thorax portion of the body.
All insects have three pairs of legs. Most insects have two pairs of wings.
Lab Activities:
1. Grasshopper
Preserved: grasshoppers
(Atlas: 4th fig 7.96-7; 5th fig 7.138, 7.139-40; 6th fig 7.147-9; 7th fig 7.169-70)
Slide: spiracle & trachea insect larva, wm
Grasshoppers are typical examples of true insects. Their body is divided into a head, thorax and an
abdomen. The head contains a pair of compound eyes and several smaller ocelli or eyespots.
They also have a pair of antennae. Of their several kinds of mouthparts their primary feeding
structure is the mandible. The thorax bears three pairs of walking legs with the hindmost pair
modified for jumping. The thorax also has two pairs of wings. The segmented abdomen contains
a tympanum, an organ of hearing, on its first segment. Along the sides of most of the abdominal
and thoracic segments are spiracles, openings to the trachea – a series of hollow branching tubes
that takes oxygen to individual body cells. At the end of the abdomen are the genitalia; a pair of
thick, tweezer-like ovipositors in the female and a pair of short cerci in the male. Make sure that
you have seen and can distinguish between the male and the female grasshopper.
2. Honeybee anatomy (use a dissecting scope)
Slide: honeybee legs, wm
(Atlas: 7th fig 7.163)
Many insects have become highly specialized for a particular lifestyle or feeding habit. Honey bees
are social insects that have become specialized for collecting and carrying pollen from flowers to
their hive. Use a dissecting scope to compare the legs of the honeybee to those of the grasshopper.
Note how the legs of the honeybee have been modified in various ways to better carry pollen.
Pollen Basket
- on outer surface of hind legs
Pollen Brushes - stiff haired, on fore and middle legs
Antenna Cleaner - on forelegs
Pollen Comb
- rows of stiff hairs in inner surface of hind legs
The bees that actually collect pollen for the hive are sterile female workers. Remember the
ovipositor of the female grasshopper that is used to lay eggs. In worker bees this ovipositor is
modified into a protective stinger with poison gland. When the colony is threatened the bees will
sting the attacker, sometimes individually or sometimes in groups (killer bees are notorious for the
aggressive way they attack and sting victims in large numbers). Because the stinger often has
barbs, it is left behind in the victim and the worker dies. Find and identify the stinger and poison
gland on the slide.
Slide: Honey Bee Stinger
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(Atlas: 5th fig 7.132; 6th fig 7.140; 7th fig 7.162)
3. Diversity in insect anatomy.
As you look at the slides below note the variation and diversity of each organ; how the same part
can be modified in a variety of ways to perform different functions
a. Insect Leg Types
Slide: insect leg types, wm
(see handout)
note how the same basic parts are modified in a variety of ways; the structure of the legs is an
important characteristic for classification
b. Insect Wing Types
Slide: insect wing types
(see handout)
note the variation and diversity of wing types in insects; certain wing types are characteristic of
specific insect orders
c. Insect Antennae
Slide: antennae types, wm
(Atlas: 5th fig 7.1356th fig 7.143)
note the variation in structure of the antennae, some of these characteristics are important in
identifying orders and species of insects
d. Modifications of Insect Mouthparts
Slides: butterfly proboscis wm
(Atlas: 5th fig 7.137a; 6th fig 7.146a; 7th fig 7.168)
Culex, wm (mosquito)
(see handout)
Musca domestica head wm (housefly)
(Atlas: 6th fig 7.141; 7th fig 7.161)
grasshopper mouthparts wm
(Atlas: 7th fig 7.172)
compare the mouthparts of a butterfly with that of a mosquito and compare to the mouthparts of
the grasshopper:
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The Echinoderms
This group consists of the starfish, brittle stars, basket stars, sea urchins and sea cucumbers. The name,
echinoderms, means “spiny skinned” animals. Of all the invertebrate animals, the echinoderms are the
most unusual in terms of their shape and their anatomy. They have an endoskeleton of calcium plates
or ossicles; sometimes buried loosely in the skin, sometimes “welded together” to form a rigid “test”.
They have a unique water vascular system for feeding, movement, respiration and excretion, and tiny
pincer-like pedicellariae for cleaning and protection. They are also the invertebrate group most closely
related to us!
Lab Activities:
In this lab you will dissect a starfish as a representative of the group. But other members of the phylum
will be on display.
1. Endoskeleton
Echinoderms have an internal skeleton of calcium plates. In seastars and brittle stars the plates are
attached by moveable hinges making the arms of the animal very flexible. In sea urchins and sand
dollars the calcium plates are fused together into a “test” or shell.
Miscellaneous dried and preserved echinoderms
Observe the skeletons of various kinds of echinoderms and observe the calcium skeletons.
2. Starfish - External Anatomy
Preserved: Asterias
(Atlas: 6th fig 7.159; 7th fig 7.182)
Note the distinctive 5-part radial symmetry of this animals and most of its relatives and the
complete absence of a head. The body of this animal consists of 5 arms radiating from a central
disc. In the center of the disc on the oral surface is the mouth and 5 rows of tube feet.On the
opposite side (the aboral surface) find a small whitish sieve plate (=madreporite) between two of
the arms of the animal.
3. Starfish - Internal Anatomy
Preserved: Asterias
(Atlas: 6th fig 7.159-65; 7th fig 7.183-6)
Take your small scissors to cut along the sides of two arms and gently lift the upper surface off of
the arms and central disc as shown in your atlas. The digestive glands (=pyloric caecae) fill most
of each arm. Beneath them are smaller gonads. By removing the gonads you can see the top of the
tube feet along the ridge of the ambulacral groove. In the oral disc is a sac-like stomach.
4. Other Echinoderms
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Look at the variety of other organisms that belong to this group; brittle stars, basket stars, sea
urchins, sand dollars, and sea cucumbers. Be able to recognize them as being echinoderms; Try to
find the skeleton, spines, & tube feet in each speciman.
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The Vertebrates
All the animals we have looked at so far and the vast majority of all animals are called invertebrates
because they lack a backbone. Most of the animals you are familiar are members of a group we call the
vertebrates. All vertebrates have an internal skeleton (=endoskeleton) of bone and/or cartilage,
including a skull and a backbone of vertebrae. Vertebrates also have a closed circulatory system, a
nervous system with a brain and spinal cord. Most have a well developed head, a mouth with
closing jaws, and two pairs of appendages. The major classes or groups of vertebrates with some of
their major features are listed below:
A. Fishes (lampreys, hagfish, sharks & rays, perch, sailfish, seahorses, eels, trout, salmon, catfish)
-all are aquatic, either freshwater, marine, or migrate between both
-most have scales under their skin and therefore seem ‘slimy’
-most have appendages in the form of fins
-respiration through gills that extract oxygen from water
- with simple nervous and circulatory systems
B. Amphibians (frogs and salamanders)
-all are aquatic at some stage in their life cycle but many live on land in moist soil or near creeks and ponds
-all have to return to water for reproduction
-most have thin delicate skin, without scales, that must be kept moist
- most with appendages in the form of 4 legs
-get oxygen through gills, if aquatic, or lungs, if on land, and also by exchange through the skin
-nervous and circulatory systems still rather simple and ‘fishlike’
C. Reptiles (snakes, lizards, turtles)
-oldest group of vertebrates who are completely adapted to land
-surface of skin covered with dry waterproof scales to prevent them from drying out
-reproduction not tied to water since they produce a shelled egg in which the embryo develops
-many care for their eggs and their young
-all respiration through lungs, lack gills and cannot breath through skin
-brain and circulatory system is more complex and more efficient
D. Birds (songbirds, woodpeckers, ducks, geese, hawks, herons, owls, pelicans, penguins, loons)
-live on land but many with various aquatic adaptations to swim and feed in water
-can fly, front pair of appendages are modified into wings
-feathers replace scales over most of body surface
-warmblooded; higher metabolic rate to accommodate the energy demands of flight
-bones of skeleton reduced, hollow and fused to decrease weight while maintaining strength
-respiratory system very efficient with extensively branching air sacs
-circulatory system with 4 chambered heart and two circuits of blood flow
-lay reptile like eggs; most care for their young
E. Mammals (mice, squirrels, cats, dogs, bears, whales, bats, porcupines, moles, humans)
-all are air breathers with lungs, but live on land or in water, some fly
-appendages modified into legs, wings, or arms with claws, nails or hoofs
-most bear live young, feed the newborns with milk from mammary glands, and care for them for a relatively long
time
-efficient circulatory system with a four chambered heart and two circuits of blood flow
-efficient respiratory system with a muscular diaphragm to inflate and deflate the lungs
-warm blooded; higher metabolic rate to accommodate the energy demands of very active lifestyles and ability to
range over entire planet regardless of climate
-hair in place of feathers or scales, used for insulation in cold weather, also coloration is important in camoflage or
displays
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Fishes
Some characteristic structures that you will seen in your dissections of fish:
fins: most fish have both paired and unpaired fins. The paired fins are part of the
appendicular skeleton
nostril: contain chemical receptors to monitor their watery environment and to find food
lateral line: most fish have a lateral line system to detect vibrations in the water, this allows
them to avoid predators or to locate prey
scales under skin layer: to help protect the animal and to enhance swimming ability
spiracle: cartilaginous fish have a spiracle that allows them to take in water to pass over the
gills when their mouth is full
operculum: bony fish have a moveable cover called an operculum that allows them to pump
water over their gills even if they are not moving
myotomes: in most fish the swimming muscles are in the form of segmented “W- shaped”
bundles
spiral valve: this coiling structure found in the intestine of cartilage fish improves absorption
after digesting its meal
swim bladder: most bony fish have a swim bladder to control their buoyancy in the water
A. The Lamprey
Lampreys are in the most primitive class of vertebrates in the Phylum Chordata. They show a
mixture of primitive and advanced traits. The adult lamprey attacks fish by attaching at its
buccal funnel to the side of the fish and using its teeth to rasp a wound. It then sucks blood
from its prey. It spawns in freshwaters where the eggs hatch into an ammocetes larva which
lives for up to seven years before becomming an adult.
Lab Activities:
1. External Anatomy
The lamprey has an eel-like body is covered with a scaleless, slimy skin. Lampreys have
no paired fins, only two dorsal fins and a caudal fin. The mouth lacks a lower jaw and
therefore cannot close its mouth. Its mouth is lined with horny (ie. not bony) teeth. A
tongue is located near the center of the funnel. A single median nostril, for detecting
chemicals in the water, is located behind the eyes on the dorsal surface of the head. Also,
try to locate portions of the lateral line system near the eyes and mouth. External gill slits
are located laterally behind the eyes.
Preserved & Plastimount: lampreys
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(Atlas: 4th fig 7.117-22; 5th fig 7.167-74; 6th fig 7.182-8; some figures may
be mislabeled; 7th fig 8.1-10)
2. Internal Anatomy
Look at the mounted sections of lampreys and identify the teeth made of keratin within the
mouth, the small brain and the nerve cord. The notochord is the only internal skeleton
that lampreys have, it is made of cartilage. Note also the gills for gas exchange, and the
heart which pumps blood through a simple circulatory system
*Do not discard lampreys, return to bucket when you complete your observations
B. The Dogfish Shark
Sharks have an internal axial & appendicular skeleton that is composed completely of cartilage.
They are very efficient swimmers since a large proportion of their body consists of muscle
tissue. In addition to dorsal and tail fins, they have appendages in the form of 2 pairs of fins.
They also have hinged jaws that are packed with teeth making most sharks efficient predators.
Lab Activities:
1. External Anatomy
Locate and identify the following structures: eyes, nostril, mouth, gill slits, spiracle,
lateral line system, dorsal, caudal, pectoral and pelvic fins, claspers (in male)
Preserved: dogfish shark
(Atlas: 4th fig 9.2-10; 5th fig 8.2 – 8.15; 6th fig 8.3-10; 7th fig 8.1-10)
2. Scales
Shark scales are bony and extend through the skin making it feel rough to the touch. Cut a
small piece of the skin, place it on a slide and look at it under a dissecting microscope. Note
how the tips of the scales pierce the skin.
3. Shark Skeleton
Look at the skeleton of the shark and be able to distinguish between the axial and
appendicular skeleton.
Preserved: shark skeleton
4. Internal Anatomy
dissect as instructed and find: gills, liver, stomach, intestine, spiral valve (=ileum),
heart, and gonads (testis or ovaries)
*Do not discard sharks, return to bucket when you complete your observations
5. Other Cartilaginous Fish
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Preserved: miscellaneous sharks & rays
Compare the external characteristics of the hammerhead and bonnet head sharks, the guitar
fish and the rays. What characteristics do they have in common?
C. The Perch
Most fish, most vertebrates, are in the group called bony fish because their internal skeleton is
usually made of bone. As in sharks, the skeleton is divided into an axial skeleton (skull, rib
cage, vertebrae) and an appendicular skeleton (2 pairs of fins) but the appendages are much
more flexible and agile allowing much finer control of body motions
Lab Activities:
1. Fish Skeleton
Preserved: perch skeleton
(Atlas: 4th fig 9.17; 5th fig 8.16; 6th fig 8.21; note: pectoral & pelvic fins and the
operculum are mislabeled in atlas; 7th fig 8.21)
view the fish skeleton and distinguish between the axial and appendicular skeletons. On
the axial skeleton find; skull, vertebrae, ribs, operculum, dorsal, ventral & caudal fins.
On the appendicular skeleton find: the bones of the pectoral and the pelvic fins.
2. Scales
Remove a scale or two from the skin of the perch. Make a wet mount and compare its
structure to the scales of the shark.
3. Dissection of the perch
Preserved: perch
(Atlas: 4th fig 9.17-8; 5th fig 8.16-8; 6th fig 8.17-22; 7th fig 8.17-23)
i. External Anatomy
Note the single dorsal, ventral and caudal fins and the paired pectoral and pelvic fins.
also find the eyes, mouth, lateral lines, and the operculum covering the gills. The
scales of most bony fish are located under a slimy layer of epidermis. Remove a scale
and place it on a slide and look at on the dissecting scope. Compare it to the shark scale
you looked at earlier. Note the growth rings – these rings can be used to determine the
age of fish.
If live fish are available: identify the pectoral and pelvic fins and note their use in
improving maneuverability.
ii. Internal Anatomy
Dissect the fish as described in lecture handout and note the gills, swim bladder,
stomach, liver, intestine, heart, gonads (ovaries or testes). Note also how the muscles
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of the fish are organized into bundles called myotomes (=myomeres) that contract to
produce the “S–like” swimming motion characteristic of fish.
3. Other examples of bony fish
Look at the illustrations and preserved examples of other kinds of bony fish. Note the
variety of shapes and forms. Can you tell anything about the fishes “lifestyle” by its general
characteristics? Locate the paired pectoral and pelvic fins on the specimens available. Are
any modified in any way?
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Amphibians
Amphibians are the first vertebrates to make the transition onto land. To do this they needed a stronger
skeleton to support their body weight against gravity, appendages that would allow them to move
across the surface and a respiratory system able to extract oxygen from air rather than from water.
Their transition to land, however, was not complete since their skin must usually be kept moist they are
not very well protected from drying out, their lungs are not very efficient and they must therefore get
much of their oxygen through their thin skin. Also, most must return to water to reproduce since their
eggs would easily dry out on land.
Some characteristic structures that you will see in your dissection of amphibians:
paired legs instead of fins: in some amphibians the hind legs have adapted to jumping
nostrils: that also help take in air as well as detect airborne chemicals
tongue: a moveable tongue that can be used to capture prey and move food to the stomach
eardrum: terrestrial amphibians have “traded” the lateral line system for ears that are better able
to detect vibrations in air (=sound waves)
lungs: very simple sac-like lungs for respiration; some aquatic amphibians have retained gills,
most terrestrial amphibians also get oxygen through their moist skin
Lab Activities:
1. The Necturus and the Frog Skeletons
The skeleton of Necturus shows the generalized design of an amphibian skeleton. Notice the
long but sturdy axial skeleton and the relatively small appendicular skeleton. Abdominal organs
are suspended from the axial skeleton which bears most of the body weight. Also the bones of
the appendages are developed into jointed legs for support on land. They are divided into
upper and lower legs and feet. This animal shows the “S-shaped’ movement typical of a fish,
but with legs instead of fins.
Observe the frog skeleton on display and distinguish between the axial and the appendicular
skeleton. The axial skeleton is much less flexible than in the fish since it must support the
animal against gravity. How do the frog’s legs differ from the paired fins of fish? How has the
frog skeleton been modified for jumping?
Notice also the absence of a rib cage in both skeletons. Amphibians have no “breathing”
musckes and must gulp air into their lungs.
Preserved: frog skeleton
(Atlas: 4th fig 9.21-2; 5th fig 8.19-20; 6th fig 8.32-4; 7th fig 8.24-5)
2. Dissection of the frog
Preserved: bullfrogs
(Atlas: 4th fig 9.29-31; 5th fig 8.25-8; 6th fig 8.32-4; 7th fig 8.32-6)
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i. External Anatomy
Locate and identify the head and trunk, note that adult frogs don’t have a tail (but their
larvae (tadpoles) do). Find the large prominent eyes, the nostrils and mouth. Note that
frogs do not have any teeth and swallow their prey whole. Also note the eardrum
(=tympanic membrane) behind the eyes. Amphibians rely much more on vision and hearing
than do fish.
ii. Internal Anatomy
Begin by locating the major internal organs in the Frog Model on display.
Dissect the frog as instructed and find the following structures: the heart, the lungs are on
each side of the heart and are essentially two small thin balloon-like sacs, frogs take in much
of their oxygen by exchange through their skin and the lining of their mouths. The
digestive system is similar to that seen in the fish with a prominent liver and stomach,
although the intestine is considerably longer and is subdivided into a small intestine and a
large intestine. Note the many fingerlike strands of fat surrounding the internal organs.
Remember that animals generally store energy in this form (whereas plants stored excess
energy as starch). Note also how the digestive organs are held in place by transparent sheets
of tissue called mesenteries to keep them from getting tangled. Find the pair of kidneys
and (urinary) bladder used to get rid of metabolic wastes and the testis or ovaries.
Amphibians must return to water for reproduction; generally the female extrudes 100’s of
eggs into the water and the male covers them with clouds of sperm.
3. Frog Life History
While amphibians were the first vertebrates to venture onto land, most still had to return to
water for reproduction and early development. Most amphibians have an aquatic embryonic
stage with gills, fins and fish-like movement followed by a metamorphosis in which the gills
and fins are lost and lungs and legs emerge for live on land.
4. Demonstrations: Representative Amphibians
be able to recognize the variety of amphibians on display. Some amphibians remain aquatic as
adults and retain the gills for respiration and fins for swimming. Many salamanders have
become adapted to cave live and have lost their skin pigment and have lost their eyes.
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Reptiles
Reptiles were the earliest group of vertebrates to make a a clean break from the water; not even having
to return to it for reproduction. Their skin is much thicker, much more waterproof with dry scales, they
have a more efficient respiratory system and circulatory system and produce a new kind of egg (the
amniotic egg) that can be laid on land and protects the developing offspring until it is ready to live on
its own.
Some characteristic structures that you will see in your observations of reptiles:
scales on the surface of skin: help to waterproof the skin and protect it from damage
shelled egg: the hard or leathery egg provides a watery environment for development so
that reptiles no longer have to return to water even for reproduction
reptile teeth: reptile teeth, when present, are all generally conical like those in fish for capturing
prey, however, the prey is swallowed whole and cannot be chewed
Lab Activities:
1. Reptile Scales. Living reptiles have thicker skin covered by dry waterproof scales for protection.
The outer layer of skin and scales are shed periodically to renew this protective layer. The
‘rattle’ of a rattlesnake is made of modified scales and is used for warning.
Preserved: shed snake skins
Preserved: Rattlesnake rattle
2. Lizard Skeleton. Note the presence of Ribs. The muscles of the rib cage are used for breathing
in Reptiles, they no longer have to ‘gulp’ air.
Preserved: lizard skeleton
3. Snake skeleton. Note the absence of the appendicular skeleton.
Preserved: snake skeleton
(Atlas: 4th fig 9.40; 5th fig 8.37; 6th fig 8.48; 7th fig 8.48)
4. Reptile teeth. Most reptiles have conical teeth for capturing prey, they cannot chew their food
and it must be swallowed whole. Venomous snakes have a pair of teeth modified into poison
fangs for injecting poison into their prey to subdue them. Other reptiles (eg. turtles) have lost
their teeth and have bird-like beaks instead better able to bite off pieces of plants or animals.
Preserved:
rattlesnake skull
alligator skull
turtle skeleton
dinosaur teeth
misc. preserved reptiles
5. The Reptile Egg - note the general structure of the egg on illustrations provided. What is the
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advantage of this type of egg over the type of egg produced by fish and amphibians.
Preserved:
turtle eggs
green anole eggs
Illustrations of reptile egg
6. Representative Reptiles - be able to recognize the variety of reptiles on display in
pictures and preserved
Preserved & Illustrations: Miscellaneous reptiles
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Birds
The overall design and anatomy of birds is related to its ability to fly. All birds (even flightless birds)
have feathers (modified from the reptile scales of their ancestors), thin, light bones and much more
efficient respiratory and circulatory systems than do most reptiles. Birds (along with mammals) are
also warm blooded to maintain a constantly high metabolism required for their more active lifestyle.
Some characteristic structures that you will see in your dissection of birds:
feathers: today, only birds have feathers although in the distant past many reptiles were feathered
as well. Feathers originated as scales (still found on the legs of birds)
beak: all birds today have a toothless beak with a very flexible neck. Their head and neck become
their main “limb” for finding and collecting food
bird skeleton: The bird skeleton is extremely light for its size to enhance its flying ability
crop: bird have an enlarged sac in their neck for storing food, it allows them to fly long distances
without stopping and to collect food to feed their young
gizzard: like reptiles, birds cannot chew their food, so have a strong muscular stomach, usually
packed with small pebble (=gastroliths) to grind the food up.
Lab Activities:
1. Feathers
The feather is the most distinctive feature of birds. They form the flight surface and
enhance the bird’s flight efficiency. They also provide excellent insulation to maintain a
high internal body temperature and reduce heat loss. The feather is essentially a modified
reptile scale. A typical feather consists of the shaft (or rachis) and the vane.
Preserved: assorted feathers & study skins
(Atlas: 4th fig 7.134; 5th fig 7.190; 6th fig 8.52; 7th fig 8.52)
2. Bird Skeleton
The basic internal skeleton is similar in all groups of vertebrates. In birds, many of the
bones are fused together and the overall size and mass are greatly reduced over the condition
seen in amphibians and reptiles. Overall, the skeleton has been lightened by the loss of
various elements and the decrease in bone mass of each individual bone. Distinguish
between the bones of the axial and the appendicular skeletons. Note how the bones of the
pectoral appendange has been modified for flight. Compare the arrangement of its bones to
the bones of the human arm.
Compare the size and weight of the ostrich and the cow bone of similar size.
Preserved:
pigeon skeleton
(Atlas: 4th fig 9.41; 5th fig 8.40; 6th fig 8.51; 7th fig 8.51)
ostrich leg bone
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3. Dissection of Pigeon
Preserved: pigeon
(Atlas: 4th fig 9.43-4; 5th fig 8.42-3; 6th fig 8.54-7; 7th fig 8.54-7)
a. External Anatomy
Using the illustration provided find the following structures: eyes, bill, nostrils, throat,
flight feathers, thigh, tibia (=tibiotarsus, “drumstick”), scales, toes, claws, vent, tail.
b. Internal Anatomy
i. Digestive System
Modern birds lack teeth. The beaks and tongues of birds are therefore modified for a
variety of feeding habits. From the mouth food passes to the crop, which is used for
food storage. This allows birds to quickly ingest large amounts of food and then move
to a safer area to complete digestion. Beneath the heart and lungs is the stomach or
gizzard. The gizzard has muscular walls which grind the food into smaller pieces.
Like reptiles, some birds swallow small pebbles to facilitate this grinding process. From
the gizzard, food enters the small intestine where most digestion and absorption occurs.
Secretions from the liver and pancreas aid in this process. The liver consists of two
lobes each of which has a duct that drains into the intestine shortly past the gizzard. The
intestine empties into the cloaca before exiting to the outside through the vent.
ii. Respiratory System
The respiratory system begins at the nostrils which open into the nasal cavity. From
these air passes into the pharynx or throat area. At the bottom of the pharynx the
digestive system separates from the respiratory system. Air passes into the trachea.
Birds have no larynx or voice box. The trachea divides into smaller and smaller tubes
inside the lungs and end in small saclike structures called alveoli where gas exchange
occurs. This design creates a much larger respiratory exchange surface than that found
in the lungs of amphibians or reptiles.
*Do not discard birds, return to bucket when you complete your observations
4. Variations in bird anatomy and nest structure
Observe the variety of bird and nest specimens in the hallway display cases.
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Mammals
Mammals have developed a covering of insulating fur in place of scales. This fur can also be used for
protection (porcupines), communication (fur coloration) and waterproofing. Rather than lay eggs like
reptiles and birds, most mammals bear live young and nurture them with milk (mammary) glands. The
evolution of mammals has resulted in a great diversity of teeth depending on their diet and unusual
skeletal features such as antlers and horns that may be used for a variety of purposes. Their limbs have
been modified for a variety of purposes; running, flying, digging, swimming etc that are reflected in
changes to the skeleton.
Of all the vertebrates, the brain and nervous system is most elaborately developed in mammals,
allowing them greater degrees of coordination and learning and more complex behaviors to enhance
their survival.
Some characteristic structures that you will see in your dissection of mammals:
fur: today only mammals have fur, in the past many reptiles also had feathers and/or fur. Fur
originated from the scales of reptiles to provide greater insulation from cold
versatile skeletons: the mammal skeleton is more massive yet the joints more agile than in any
other vertebrate with a wide variation in sizes and shapes to adapt to a particular mammals
lifestyle
mammal teeth: the 4 main kinds of mammal teeth (incisors, canines, premolars & molars) have
been adapted in numerous ways to suit the diet of each species. Mammals can bite off
pieces of food and chew them before swallowing thus improving the efficiency of d
digestion
lungs: mammal lungs are very efficient at taking in oxygen for their warm blooded lifestyle. Gas
is exchanged in tiny sacs called alveoli
Lab Activities:
1. Modifications of Hair – one of the main identifying characteristics of mammals is the
presence of hair. Mammal hair is homologous to the scales of reptiles and the feathers of birds,
it grows from follicles in the skin.
i. Horns and Antlers.
Observe and distinguish between horns and antlers. Horns are produced
mostly in hoofed animals and grow around a core of bone throughout the
animals life. The tough, horny layer surrounding the bony core is homologous
to the hair on the rest of the body. In contrast, the antlers of deer, elk, caribou,
etc are made of bone. As they first begin growing they are covered with a layer
of "fuzzy" or hairy epidermis called velvet, which eventually falls away. Antlers
are shed and regrown anually. They are not homologous to the keratinized horn
above.
Preserved: Misc. horns & antlers
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ii. Armor
The protective flexible carapace and scutes of the armadillo are formed from fused
hairs.
Preserved: armadillo
iii. Defensive hairs
Porcupines and hedgehogs have thick sharp hairs called quills that it uses in
defense. While the porcupine cannot "shoot" its quills, they do break off easily
once embedded in the attacker.
Preserved: porcupine quills
2. Mammal Skeletons
i. Human.
Like other vertebrates, the basic bones of the skeleton in all mammal are
the same regardless of various adaptations and lifestyles and can be grouped
into the axial skeleton consisting of the skull, vertebrae, ribs and sternum,
and the appendicular skeleton consisting of the pectoral and pelvic girdles
and the pectoral and pelvic appendages.
Model: human skeleton
(Atlas: 4th fig 8.10-11; 5th fig 9.10-11; 6th fig 9.10-11; 7th fig 9.10-11)
ii.
Bat Wing
Compare the skeletal structure of the bat wing with that of the bird.
Preserved: bat skeleton
iii. Mole Skeleton
Note how the bones of the hand have been modified for digging.
iv. Sectioned cow skull
Note the large size of the nasal cavity compared to other classes of vertebrates. The sense of
smell is much more important in mammals.
v. Feeding Adaptations
Just as the beaks of birds are modified for various feeding types, the teeth
of mammals are variously modified for various types of foods. Carnivorous
mammals typically have large canines to hold onto prey, sharp incisors to cut
pieces of flesh and pointed premolars to help chew meat. Herbivore typically
have small canines or no canines, nipping incisors and broad flat premolars
and molars for grinding the tough plant fiber before swallowing. Omnivores'
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teeth share some of the characteristics of both feeding types. Observe the teeth
in the various skulls and determine whether the animal is a carnivore (a meat
eater), an herbivore (a plant eater)or an omnivore (eats both plant and animal
foods).
Preserved: miscellaneous mammal skulls & teeth
3. Dissection of the Fetal Pig
Preserved: fetal pig
(Atlas: 4th fig 9.72-3, 9.81-90; 5th fig 8.59-60, 8.68-72; 6th fig 8.73-4, 8.82-6; 7th fig
8.73-4, 8.82-6)
i. External Anatomy
Identify the following structures: eyes, nose, mouth, teeth, tongue, ears, umbilical cord,
tail, anus, hoof
ii. Internal Anatomy
Identify the following structures: larynx, trachea, heart, lungs, diaphragm,
liver, pancreas, stomach, small intestine, large intestine, spleen, kidney, ovaries/testes
4. Mammal Nervous system
Preserved: cat nervous system, human brain
Study the preserved cat nervous system and distinguish between the central and peripheral
nervous systems. Compare the structure and size of the mammal brain with that of the other
classes of vertebrates. How is the human brain different from the brain of other mammals?
5. Human Evolution
Four skulls are displayed representing 4 of the major stages in the evolution of modern humans.
Study the skulls and read the information provided.
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Name:_________________________
The Animal Kingdom
Biol 1409 Lab Report
I. Animal Cells, Tissues, Organs & Organ Systems
1. List the major organelles of animal cells discussed in this exercise and give the function of each
2. Describe how a typical animal cell differs from a typical plant cell; fungus cell; protist cell; bacterial
cell:
3. Both plants and animals have true tissues and organs. How exactly do animal tissues and organs
differ from plant tissue and organs
4. name the animal tissue or organ used to make any 5 of the following food products:
chitlins
filet mignon
cracklins
rocky mountain oysters
sweet bread
blood sausage
menudo
tamales(traditional)
caviar
escargo
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II. Animal Reproduction, Development & Life Cycles
4a. Describe a specific example of asexual reproduction in an animal.
b. Describe a specific example of sexual reproduction in an animal.
5. What is the difference between an embryo and a larva? Between a nymph and a fetus?
6. Describe some of the advantages of having a complex developmental cycle with several different
stages before adulthood?
III. Animal Diversity
7. Describe the differences between invertebrates and vertebrates and give five examples of each.
Which of these two categories contains the most species?
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A. Invertebrates:
8: Sponges
a. Where exactly would you expect to find collar cells?
b. Draw a collar cell and describe how it works and what it does
c. Draw a few spicules. What is their function?
9: Hydras & Corals & Jellyfish
a. Draw and describe a stinging cell (=nematocyst or cnidoblast). What is it used for?
b. Why, specifically, are some jellyfish and corals so dangerous?
10. Planarians
a. How is the digestive system of the planarian similar, and how is it different from that of the
hydra
b. Describe the movement of the planarian and compare it to that of the vinegar eel.
11. Worms
a. List 4 similarities and 4 differences between the worms you studied in the lab.
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12. Shelled Animals (Molluscs)
What are the advantages of a shell for these animals?
13. Parasites
a. Why do parasites usually produce so many eggs?
b. Name a major organ system that some parasites completely lack.
14. Arthropods
a. List at least two characteristics of each of the 4 groups of arthropods that would allow you to
distinguish them from each other. Then list two ways that they are all similar.
b. Describe some of the ways that the honeybee is adapted to collecting pollen and nectar?
c. How has the plant adapted to being pollinated by bees?
15. Echinoderms
How, specifically, are echinoderms different from every other invertebrate group?
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General Invertebrates
16. Name and describe a specific example of:
a. an animal with no true organs or tissues
b. an animal with true tissues but only very simple, if any, organs
c. an invertebrate with all organ systems listed in the lab packet
d. an example of a colonial animal
B. Vertebrates
Fill in the appropriate cells in the tables below with all the organs & structures you identified during
your dissections of each of the vertebrate classes. (not all cells will be used)
Organ
System
Jawless Fish
Sharks &
Rays
Bony Fish
skin
skeleton
muscles
buoyancy
respiration
digestive
circulation
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Nervous &
Sense organs
urinary
reproductive
Organ
System
Amphibians
Reptiles
Birds
Mammals
skin
skeleton
respiration
digestive
circulation
Nervous sys &
sense organs
urinary
reproductive
17. name a vertebrate with the most primitive organ systems listed in the lab packet
18. name a vertebrate with the most advanced organ systems listed in the lab packet
19. Name three different organ systems that are found in all the vertebrates you studied and dissected
in the lab. Is the function of these organ systems the same in each group? Explain.
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20. Which organ or organ system shows the greatest amount of change from the simplest vertebrates to
the mammals?
21. How do organ systems of aquatic vertebrates differ from those of land vertebrates; describe as
many major differences as you can.
22. a. How do birds resemble reptiles?
b. How do birds resemble mammals?
c. How do some mammals resemble reptiles
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